Coalfire — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

Best thin-crust pizza around, rightly deserving of the many accolades it's received over the 8 or so years Coalfire has been in business. Owners Bill and Dave bring East Coast-style Neapolitan pizza to Chicago, baking it in a coal-fired oven (850+ degrees) to give the chewy crust a slight, smoky char. (NB This is not cheesy, greasy NYC pizza, but more resembles New Haven apizza than anything else.) The menu allows you to build your own, but highlights a dozen or so tested and true combinations. Our current favorite is the Cremini, with coal-roasted mushrooms and garlic finished with an arugula topping. But the house specialty Margherita is a perfect example of its type, and the White pie is classic New Haven. Meats and cheeses are sourced from a variety of local vendors, and over time you'll see them mix it up a bit. (I'm still missing the bacon-and-onion pizza they had a few years ago: the bacon came from PQM and was deeply porky and chewy.) Good selection of bottled beer and wine. There are a few salads to start, and dessert is a selection of sinfully-rich cupcakes. Friendly, highly efficient waitstaff and a fast order turnaround time means that even when there's a line outside, you'll be seated quickly, usually with in 20-40 minutes. If it's real busy, Bill or Dave will take your phone number and direct you to a nearby bar, where you can relax and wait for your table to open. Coalfire is the real deal, so no more...

Local pizza place open by two awesome guys. (David & Bill) It comes as no surprise that this pizza has been awarded one of Chicago's Best by Chicago magazine. And I have also seen two different Pizza tour trucks making a stop here as I grabbed one to go on my way home. Fresh ingredients like fresh mozzarella, basil spinach with homemade sauce ,homemade crust done in a coal-fired oven. You can make your own pie or choose one of their delicious specialties pizzas . so delicious just talking about it is making me hungry. The very first time I went they made me feel like I was a regular. Everyone from the server's, cashier's, Cooks and the owners the whole staff makes you feel like a VIP or a member of the family . Grab one of the many delicious salads thén move on to your choice of pie. order one for yourself take the rest home. it'll be a nice snack later when you're wishing you had more you'll have it:-) :-) and then grab a delicious dessert provided by local merchants. They won me over with the pizza I kept me coming back because of the great service . One of my favorite Chicago spots doing the light modern thin crust worthy of Mama Nona. It's also a great place to grab grub on your way to a concert or sporting events as they are conveniently located less than 5...

Chicago is known for its deep dish pizza.....but I'm a much bigger fan of the crisp-yet-chevy, superthin, coal-oven, Neapolitan style of pizza. Coalfire does this VERY well.

The inside decor is minimalist -- nothing fancy. They've got a variety of decent craft beer in bottles. A few types of cupcakes for dessert.

But the pizza. OMG... the pizza. This is one of my favorite pizza joints in Chicago. Last time I was here, my group had the 'Nduja (spicy Calabrese salami, fresh mozzarella, basil and tomato sauce) but we added goat cheese. The 'Nduja is one of the tastiest pizzas I have ever eaten. The flavors were a perfect combo. Sweet, creamy goat cheese with the fresh basil and that spicy sausage!

Pizzas are thinner and delicate, so I recommend no more than a few toppings on a pizza. Two people can share a pizza....3 if you're not that hungry. (Just get another one if you have 3 people. They're so good....