Which Pizza Is Best?

[big dog cowboy]

Dominos, Little Caesars, Papa John’s, Sbarro, and Pizza Hut: Which Pizza Is Best?
Anthony Sulla-Heffinger
May 8, 2015

Cheese, dough, and sauce. With just three ingredients, you would think pizza is the simplest food of all-time — but it isn’t.

Thin crust, deep dish, Chicago-style, New York-style, Detroit-style, hand-tossed: I fancy myself a pizza connoisseur. I have spent my entire life living in New York City, arguably the pizza capital of the world (it’s the water), and consider pizza to be my favorite food on the planet. From Di Fara in Brooklyn to Frank Pepe in West Hartford, Conn., there isn’t a place that is too far when it comes to grabbing a great slice of pizza. While in 26 years, I’ve easily tried more than 50 places in the New York tri-state area, but my expertise isn’t limited to your local mom and pop parlors. I love the national chains, too.

I can offer you hacks on how to get four toppings for the price of two on your Dominos order and explain to you the difference between Pizza Hut’s breadsticks and Little Caesars’ Crazy Bread. I’ve made friends with delivery drivers — that’s how frequently I dine on pizza.

Recently, in an effort to once and for all determine the best pizza you can get across the United States, I spent an afternoon sampling some of the largest chain pizza shops in America: Dominos, Little Caesars, Papa John’s, Pizza Hut, and Sbarro.

The parameters of the test were simple: Order one large pie with half pepperoni from each store, delivered if available, and taste each one individually in order to determine which reigns supreme in the battle for cheesy, doughy dominance.

The results:

1. Domino's
2. Sbarro
3. Little Ceasars
4. Pizza Hut
5. Papa John's

Read much more: https://www.yahoo.com/food/dominos-little-caesars-papa-johns-sbarro-and-118224557216.html

 

[RonSpringsdaman20]

Yuk to all... give me a slice from a local in NY, Philly, I'll even take a deep dish from Chicago...
Something not right about those franchise pizza's to me taste wise... I've tasted better Pizza overseas.

But... if I had to, Sbarro comes the closest, and they sell by the slice.

 

[jimmy40]

Little Ceasars is just trash pizza, waiting in the warmer for people too lazy to wait 10 minutes for better pizza.

 

[Hardline]

Out of the five listed I have only had Pizza Hut and Dominos.
And Pizza hut wins by a mile.

 

[speedkilz88]

If Pizza Hut was 80 minute delivery and cold then it wasn't a fair competition. I'm a Pizza Hut pan pizza fan myself and I like the new crust choices for the outside edge. Really like the asiago cheese one. Never had the Chicago deep dish but would love to try that. I would like to try the NY style too but it isn't that appealing because I don't like thin crust and the whole folding stuff is laughable to me. I'm originally from the bay area and my brothers and parents always missed a chain on the west coast called The Round Table. I can remember getting it but don't remember the taste.

 

[StarBoyz83]

Guess I need to try Domino's again. Stopped eating it a long time ago because it always seemed doughy. I do like how pizza hut has all new ways to flavor to your pizza and crust. Only thing I like about papa johns is the garlic sauce lol but its to expensive.

 

[Kevinicus]

Out of those options, I'd rank Papa Johns the best. Probably domino's after that. Pizza Hut would probably be at the bottom, and by quite a bit. But thin crust Pizza Hut and Pan are very different (Thin crust being better). Sbarro for being close to NY style is not nearly as good as other options I have in the area for NY style (which would probably be my favorite over any of these). Little Caesar's can be good if it is fresh. The Hot & Now is crap unless you luck out and get one straight out of the oven. Whenever I go there I tell them I will wait for a fresh one.

 

[Jenky]

Also prefer NY style pizza. But nowadays there's so many great types of frozen specialty pizzas sold in grocery stores, for such a cheap price. They are definitely worth checking out if you have the time.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Of that list? (not an impressive list) Pizza Hut by a country mile.

I would say Sbarro is the closest to NY style pizza, but I prefer thin crackery crust to all others. Especially when you get thin crust brick oven pizza.

Brick Oven Pizza is one Pizza to rule them all.

 

[CyberB0b]

I like real Italian pizza the best. Cane Rosso is nice in Dallas.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Guess I need to try Domino's again. Stopped eating it a long time ago because it always seemed doughy.

Old Domino's (like 15 years ago) really sucked but recently a new one opened by us and I have to say overall it is pretty good.

But thin crust Pizza Hut and Pan are very different (Thin crust being better).

I'm primarily a Pizza Hut guy but I go with their hand tossed crust and extra sauce. OK my mouth is watering now.

 

[CF74]

Ssbaros from that list...

 

[WPBCowboysFan]

The places on that list have pizza? None of them are better than a $3 Tombstone or Red Baron frozen pizza from Target or Walmart, so I dont even consider them pizza joints.

But if you HAVE to eat any of their "pizza" in my experience it would have to be Pizza Hut. Ive never had a Papa Johns pizza that wasnt horrible. How do they stay in business?

 

[TheEnigma]

The places on that list have pizza? None of them are better than a $3 Tombstone or Red Baron frozen pizza from Target or Walmart, so I dont even consider them pizza joints.

But if you HAVE to eat any of their "pizza" in my experience it would have to be Pizza Hut. Ive never had a Papa Johns pizza that wasnt horrible. How do they stay in business?

Tombstone/Red Baron has a very good price to enjoyment ratio. Your not eating gourmet food or anything but they are good when on a budget. Give me a Red Baron over Little Ceaser's any day.

I was never really a fan of Domino's Pizza...and then I started working there. There's a rule in food service, never work somewhere you enjoy eating. The problem with Domino's though is that they put such a high priority on speed, that quality can suffer. I will say this though, as far as chain pizza goes, a lot of it comes down to your location. While the product at each store might be the same, there are a lot of other factors that go into the quality of the pizza that comes out. You may go to a Domino's in one city and enjoy it and then go to one in another city and get a totally different experience.

I think if I were to build the best chain pizza though, it would be to take Papa Johns sauce and toppings, Domino's cheese, and Pizza Huts crust. Papa Johns is my favorite if it wasn't for their crust. It is terrible.

In the end, It all comes down to personal taste.

 

[RonSpringsdaman20]

Little Ceasars is just trash pizza, waiting in the warmer for people too lazy to wait 10 minutes for better pizza.

hahahahah! ha!

 

[JoeyBoy718]

I haven't eaten at one of those places since I was a child. Why would anyone ever go to one of them when there are much better non-chain joints all over?

 

[Kevinicus]

The places on that list have pizza? None of them are better than a $3 Tombstone or Red Baron frozen pizza from Target or Walmart, so I dont even consider them pizza joints.

But if you HAVE to eat any of their "pizza" in my experience it would have to be Pizza Hut. Ive never had a Papa Johns pizza that wasnt horrible. How do they stay in business?

Remind me never to ask you for pizza advice.

As far as frozen pizza goes. Jack's is the best bang for your buck. Tombstone and Red Baron are bleh, at least since Tombstone stopped making their little single deep dish pizzas.

 

[Kevinicus]

I haven't eaten at one of those places since I was a child. Why would anyone ever go to one of them when there are much better non-chain joints all over?

Most of the other places "all over" that I've tried weren't any better, and in most cases were worse. The ones that stood out as being good quickly went out of business.

 

[RonSpringsdaman20]

Remind me never to ask you for pizza advice.

As far as frozen pizza goes. Jack's is the best bang for your buck. Tombstone and Red Baron are bleh, at least since Tombstone stopped making their little single deep dish pizzas.

frozen pizza is the worst... i'd rather make a sandwich.

 

[RonSpringsdaman20]

I haven't eaten at one of those places since I was a child. Why would anyone ever go to one of them when there are much better non-chain joints all over?

You've lived a lavish pizza life my friend.