Here's Where You Can Try IL's Best Pies On National Pizza Day

National Pizza Day is Monday, Feb. 9, and fortunately, Illinois has plenty of local pizzerias where you can grab a slice so scrumptious you may hear angels sing.

But don’t take our word for it.

Pies from Illinois were counted among the nation’s best in various 2025 rankings from sites such as the Food Network, Tasting Table and others.

• Tievoli Pizza Bar, 44 W. Palatine Road, Palatine. Last March, Tievoli Pizza Bar competed in the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas. The event featured a total of 550 eateries, most of them from Italy. Owner Giovanni Labbate represented Tievoli, which finished second as a Midwest region winner in the traditional preliminaries. RELATED: 2 IL Pizzerias Win At International Competition
• Professor Pizza, 1374 W. Grand Ave., Chicago. Professor Pizza also competed in the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas. Owner Anthony Scardino represented the restaurant, which won in the Midwest region for "World's Best Cheese Slice" preliminaries.
• Milly's Pizza in the Pan, 925 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. The pizzeria, which also has a location in Berwyn, was crowned as one of the 19 best pizzerias in the world by Time Out. Milly's Pizza in the Pan was ranked 11th on the list released in April 2025. RELATED: Chicago Pizzeria Named Among Best In The World By Time Out
• Bungalow by Middle Brow, 2840 W. Armitage Ave., Chicago. The restaurant was featured in Food & Wine magazine's "These Are the 10 Must-Visit Pizzerias in the United States" list in June. Bungalow by Middle Brow was lauded for its fresh take on tavern-style pizza. RELATED: This IL Pizzeria Makes 'Must-Visit' List — And It's Not Deep Dish
• Robert's Pizza and Dough Company, 465 N. McClurg Court, Chicago. The restaurant was named to the "50 Top Pizza USA 2025" list in July. The restaurant specializing in thin-crust artisanal pizzas ranked No. 6 on the list of the nation’s top pizzerias. RELATED: 2 Illinois Pizzerias Are Ranked Among Top 50 In U.S.
• Coda di Volpe, 3335 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. The restaurant was also named to the "50 Top Pizza USA 2025" list. Featuring pizza from the southern region of Italy, Coda di Volpe was ranked No. 46.
• Coalfire (two locations) at 1321 W. Grand Ave. and 3707 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. The pizzeria was named by Eat This, Not That! "The Absolute Best Pizza in Every State" for Illinois. "Aptly dubbed, Coalfire burst onto Chicago’s pizza scene in 2007, utterly redefining and broadening the perception of pizza in one of the most pizza-famed cities on Earth," the list said about the restaurant.
• Pie-Eyed Pizzeria, 1111 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago. The restaurant was the representative for Illinois in last year's "50 States of Pizza Slices," compiled by Food Network. In describing Pie-Eyed Pizzeria, the author praised the restaurant, saying the family behind it "has combined their love of guitar riffs and great slices at this Chicago River West spot."
• Vito & Nick's Pizzeria, 8433 S Pulaski Road, Chicago. In 2025, the restaurant was named to Tasting Table's "The Best Pizza Places In Every State, Hands Down" list. The author said the family-owned pizzeria that has been serving the city since 1923 "still has that old-school vibe, and tons of customers who say that this is pizza at the pinnacle of perfection."

The modern pizza, with tomato sauce and cheese, traces back to Naples, Italy, in the 1700s–1800s, when it was inexpensive street food for working people. Italian immigrants brought pizza to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The first licensed pizzeria in the U.S. was Lombardi’s in New York City, which began operations in the early 1900s and is still operating today. U.S. soldiers stationed in Italy during and after World War II developed a taste for pizza and helped fuel its wider acceptance back home.

Today a staple of American dining, pizza has countless regional styles, including New York, Chicago, New Haven, Detroit, California, St. Louis, Neapolitan and Sicilian.

• RELATED: What’s The Best Regional Pizza Style? Patch Pizza Throwdown Survey Results