Iconic Chicago pizza palace Gino’s East opens in Dallas

Classic Chicago pizza pie shop Gino’s East expands its Windy City reach to Dallas this week with the November 19 opening of its 200-seat restaurant on Lombardy Lane at Northwest Highway.

The store incorporate some of the same DNA as the original location in Chicago, including red checkered vinyl tablecloths, graffiti-inked walls, and dark wooden floors.

Of course, you go to Gino’s East for their celebrated deep dish pizzas, not the decor package, and this Chicago transplant doesn’t disappoint. These are knife-and-fork pizzas, sturdy pies with thick, crumbly crusts layered first with cheese then with toppings then blanketed with a spicy, chunky marinara sauce.

My waiter told me that each large pie contains more than a pound of cheese and that every ingredient, from the dough to the marinara, is made fresh daily. That iconic crust, by the way, doesn’t contain any cornmeal; a manager confirmed its texture comes from an oil-rich recipe that contains a bit of dough conditioner that includes a yellow coloring agent.

The restaurant is open for dine-in lunch and dinner. Take-out service begins in December.

10310 Lombardy Lane, Dallas, 214-351-1577