Honestly I don't know if there is a better pan pizza in Chicagoland. Crispy in all the right spots. Saucy but not super saucy and the crust is crazy good. One suggestion for some added zing even though your pizza is nearly perfect... Suggestion: find out the cheese combination that Salernos pizza on Grand Ave in chicago uses and replicate it. That would officially make your pizza the best in the USA by my assessment. Nice job...keep up the great work! Ending this so I can call and order for dinner. read more

When Lefty's first opened, their pizza was awesome and consistent. Last two deliveries the pizza was overdone to the point were we couldn't eat it. We thought we would give them one more chance after seeing a positive review on Instagram. Unfortunately, we were disappointed again. This time burnt Roman flour under the crust and on top of a potion of the thin crust pizza which made it inedible - had to throw it out. It is like sand in your mouth. The deep dish was okay, but not nearly as good as when they opened and toppings had slid to one side - but we understand that happens. I really want to like this place. Lefty's had so much potential. Guess we are back to ordering Lous, which is consistent and edible. Hate to write a bad review, but after three bad experiences in a row, I want others to know what they may encounter. Response to owner: we gave you two more tries after that first bad experience. Do you want to be the emperor with no clothes or do you want to know you need to improve so your business doesn't tank. I guess the latter. Such a shame. read more

I have no idea what's going on with this pizzeria. It used to be my favorite and go to. I have not ordered in a few months... this is the pizza I received. The crust is completely off...maybe the dough didn't rise enough...not enough yeast? Please revert back to your original recipe Response to owner: I did not have Yelp in the past...recently opened this account. The crust is NOT the same. If you would like me to bring it back so you can see for yourself and review it with your staff- please send me a private message. read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

I'm definitely a fan of deep dish especially with the browned cheese on the edges. I didn't know they opened in Highland Park and I definitely like it better here. Down in Wilmette it's the same pizza but I don't like being cramped inside that place and it's often very smoky with no ventilation. It's spacious here clean and put together. I love the long booths that seat up to 8 people and there are tables as well. The menu is on the board and their salads are better than Pequod's or Burt's. Too bad there's no alcohol and no BYOB. There's 2 televisions and brand new looking pizza ovens. The parking is streets and there's a public parking lot nearby. read more

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Been here a few times now and I could say this is one of my favorite pizza place. I only wish they would deliver to us. I like how they started doing pizza by slice and a couple other non-pizza options for lunch. I enjoyed their burnt cheese crust pan pizza, but their thin crust pizza is really good too! Probably the best tavern style thin crust in the entire north shore/northwest suburbs. It's not cardboard-like at most other places. I think they added oil/butter to their pizza dough so it's a bit "flaky-ish" and also crunch. The crust is very thin, and they put cheese to almost the edge that the whole pie was really tasty. Their cheese curds are freshly fried...not that many places pass the cheese pull test :P read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

We noticed Lefty's across the street from a public parking lot by the Highland Park train station and decided to give them a try. Lefty's offers thin and pan crust pizza, as well as a selection of sandwiches. We tried a small pan pizza with spinach, mushrooms and garlic. The pizza came up in about 15 minutes. We took advantage of their outdoor seating and appreciated that their staff brought our pizza out to us and when they noticed we planned to eat their they brought out paper plates and plastic ware. The pizza was good. It had a caramelized crust and the cheese and tomato sauce were good enough I would have been happy with a plain cheese pizza. We'll definitely stop in again. read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Small pan pizza with spinach, mushrooms and garlic - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

It's me again! Pizza fanatic. We heard about something new in Highland Park and if it's about pizza, then you know I'm in. Ahhh COVID times, you are challenging us but we will prevail and support our local businesses. Ordering from the website was a breeze and we had the option to have it delivered or picked up curbside or inside. We needed to see the actual restaurant so we headed inside. Staff was friendly and pickup was easy! Now for the good stuff. The pizza was huge (16") and it was so beautiful. Look at my photo to see that incredible dark cheesy crust! That my friends is how you deep dish!! This pizza fed 4 working guys perfectly. The taste is hard to describe but thus Detroit style pizza is one for the books! Working in town has its perks and we will definitely be back! read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

I would give zero stars if I could. Awful ownership yelled at me for them missing a pizza from my order. Absolute clown . Thin crust is trash too. read more

True that we have so many pizza options in Chicago but I think this is one of the very best; I particularly like the carmelized crust. It's got the perfect amount of sauce, cheese, and toppings ratio. Also, it's flavorful. Somewhat limited menu but what more do you need from a pizza place. I was pretty hungry so I needed some fries while waiting for pan pizza to cook (est time 20 mins). What was lacking in the quality, frozen crinkle cut vs hand cut, was made up in flavor. Prices are reasonable, seating is plentiful, and street parking can easily be had. read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Spinach & mushroom size medium - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

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Grabbed a slice today with my wife while attending the art fair. The staff is friendly and nice. This pizza spot is wonderful for friendly hangouts and family gatherings. The slices are great for sharing between two people. read more

My favorite fried cheese curds in the neighborhood - possibly in Illinois! I have to get that up there, right away. I've had a lotta fried cheese curds, from numerous restaurants in Illinois and Wisconsin, since my better half really loves 'em. I'm less of a fan, and many of the fried cheese curds I've been served just aren't what I'm looking for. I prefer a less-sharp cheese (more buttery), with a good squeak when you bite it; and breading that's crumbly and crunchy. I usually have to go to Wisconsin, or one of the rare A&W restaurants in Illinois, to get the curds I like. Lefty's popped up a few months back, right in my home town, and - oh, yeah - they prep fried cheese curds exactly the way I like it! Lefty's pan pizza is very tasty, with a nice tart sauce that I enjoy (but some folks I know aren't as thrilled with), savory buttery cheese (Wisconsin brick cheese & mozzarella blend?), and very generous toppings. They get a nice char on the edges, the crust is perfectly cooked in the middle, and everything blends together nicely. I'm not always in the mood for a pan pizza, but theirs is one of the better ones in the neighborhood. Their thin crust, IMHO, is the real star of the pizza oven at Lefty's. You can get some really good thin crust in the area - NY Slices, Il Forno, Judy's, MOD, Slyce, Piero's, and more - so it can be difficult to stand out. Lefty's think crust manages to hang with the best of the best in the area. They have that great tart tomato sauce, their crust crisps up perfectly, they get a beautiful char on the edges, the cheese is delicious, and they're very generous with the toppings. The price is very reasonable for the size and quality, and they can have your order out really quick during off-peak hours. In addition to the fried cheese curds, we've also tried the fried dill pickle bites, which were really tasty. Service is fast, friendly, and they maintain a nice clean restaurant. In addition to fountain drinks, they carry a LOT of flavors of Filbert's Old Fashioned Soda in bottles. Their salads look good, and we're hoping to try them next time we order out. Lefty's is conveniently located in downtown Highland Park, on the northeast corner of Port Clinton Square (Central Ave. and and 1st St.), with plenty of parking nearby (including underground parking). read more

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Worst experience ever. Now we know why the closed the next week. Pizza was under cooked. Took over an hour and the place was filthy. Stay away for this place, just nasty. read more

A pretty bad pizza place this the problem with this place is not the building as the location and unique infrastructure of a makes it likely one of norfolk's best pizza the problem is is teenage staff is very slow and the pizza crust was hardly horrible and again this might have been one of the worst pizzas I've ever had. They use very cheap ingredients and the young staff are very lazy and slow. This place doesn't realize that pizza crush and not be hard as it was and again this was not a very good pizza you would be better off going to Domino's or Little Caesars read more

Seriously one of the better tavern style pizzas I've had. We've taken out from lefty's but eating in it was even better. Great for kids. And the beef Sando is solid... really solid. read more

The seating is SO uncomfortable that it's not worth going even though the pizza is so so. The booth has a 2 foot space between the seat and the back, so there's no back support whatsoever. We were all super uncomfortable and we're all able bodied. Our pizza was unevenly cooked, some pieces crispy others soggy. The sauce tasted like canned crushed tomatoes (and not much more) and overall the pizza was cheesy but not a lot of flavor. Sadly, an extra large pizza with pepperoni on half arrived with exactly 3 pieces of pepperoni on the whole thing. read more

Thick is decent. Thin is really bad. Crust is flavorless. On the website there was BBQ chicken pizza...and didn't specify pan or thin. I asked for pan and I got thin on the special requests. It should at least specify on the website, and/or don't take special requests if you can't fulfil that. And they were literally out of pepperoni. How could a pizza place be out of pepperoni read more

I work 50 yards (at most) from Lefty's and one Saturday at 4 pm, I called to have them deliver one pizza to my location. I was charged $4 to deliver a 30 second walk away. I went to the restaurant a few weeks later (to pick up) and casually mentioned to the on site manager that I felt the $4 delivery fee to walk 50 yards seemed like a bit much. The manager then told me I was rude and didn't care that I was upset because his business was very good without mine. When I called the owner (at a different location) to report this, I have yet to get a call back. Needless to say, the poor customer service and rude manager will be enough to deter me - and should deter you - from going back again. It's unfortunate that a local business that opened during a pandemic would turn business away so quickly. read more

The pizza was so, so tasty! I did the gluten free crust with peppers, sausage, and onion and it was some of the best pizza I've had in a longtime! My husband did a pan crust with pepperoni and it was so great as well. read more

Great pizza and salads. Have gotten dine in and delivery multiple times and always great.

Excellent wings! Definitely a go to for wings fest! Sauce, size, blue cheese all good...

Let me tell you, if you're a Pequod's fan (think of that caramelized crust) you will love Lefty's. They are not the exact same but close. Lefty's is slightly thinner which gives it a crustier bottom. They top the pizza with plenty of sauce and all the toppings are fresh! You also cannot beat the price. It is so much more affordable than Pequod's. The XL with two toppings is about $32, it's eight slices which is more than enough food for four adults. The Highland park location has outdoor seating so we golf at Sunset Valley and then hit Lefty's for dinner almost every weekend now. ALWAYS ORDER THE XL. Take the leftovers home. It heats so well in the oven on 375 for 12-15 minutes. read more

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Ordered via delivery. Got here fast but a bit disappointed. Ordered thin onion, mushroom and peppers well done. I marked the well done option & asked to be well done in the special instructions. It wasn't well done. Just like last time. The toppings were so inconsistently cut, some mushrooms and peppers were cut so thick they were still raw (that goes to show it wasn't well done too). They are very expensive and so long as the pizza is cooked as ordered, I don't mind paying but twice now they didn't so I won't be ordering here again. So bummed because first order here was so awesome and I've given them enough tries since. read more

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So we ordered 2 small pizzas from here with the toppings we love (byop: bring your own pineapple) And 2 from lous. These guys crushed the 2 small lous. I have to say as new people to the area, the hour wait for Lefty's is well worth it! Eat up. read more

The pizza is good, but I wouldn't recommend anything else here. The sausage is delicious an the pizza is always cooked well and is ready quickly, whether is is delivery or take out. read more

Definitely a pizza snob, and I want to make sure that whoever is reading this understands that being a New Yorker, picky is an understatement. It was 10 minutes before 11am. Drive bye and it was open. The perfect time of day to get your dairy and meat on a "perfectly crispy crust". Enjoyable hot slice of sausage pizza. Couldn't quite figure it out at first because it could not be folded. Ate it so quickly that the roof of my mouth burned, which is a sign my tastebuds were definitely enjoying the slice (and you can get it by the slice which is always a positive in the State of Illinois). The one thing I couldn't figure out was the crust itself. I like a puffier pastry-like crust and this was sort of "crackery" and crunchy. But I guess I shouldn't be complaining because they do say it's the "home of the caramelized crust". Staff was welcoming and I was sure to tell, who I thought was the owner, exactly what I thought about the pizza. Will I be back? Probably. I think I'll try the wings next time. read more

I feel like we eat a lot of pizza, and by we, I mean, myself and the guy. He's less of a cheese fantatic, and myself, I lived in Wisconsin, and California, so I will be having ALL the cheese. All the -delicious- cheese. Lefty's here was a right treat for both of us- the guy got the sauce that he's been wishing for all his life, and I was loving the cheese, sausage, and mushrooms. Now normally the dog would be getting pizza bones, the pizza ribs, (I think the usual name is "the crust",) but the char on the edge was just perfect. Dingus was sad, because there wasn't much left for her. For the first time, the guy actually ate more of the pizza leftovers than I did. We're looking forward to another trip there, to experience the thin crust, and how that works out, and be back we will, because of the other part you won't stop hearing me rave about. Nestle in friends, because we're going on a little talk about cheese. If I see "cheese curds" on the menu, they're being ordered. (This is pertinent to you if you like cheese curds, as there are several styles.) Some of my favorites have been from A&W, which are a lovely beer battered cheddar cheese curd, little warm nuggets of happiness. Less fun are any sort of bitey cheese, there's a place in town that has saganaki curds (Backyard Grill, for those wondering- it occurs to me someone else might like these more than I do), which are good, and I do like the size and shape, but they're not quite what I want all the time. Now Lefty's may have toppled my favorite cheese curd place, which has been held by AJ Bomber's in Milwaukee. Lefty's has a crispy, textured, breaded cheese curd, but it's not too heavy. It's a little thicker than say your average beer battered cheese curd, but not by much. AND SO BUTTERY, my friends! They even squeaked, which is the quintessential qualifiier for excellent (fresh) cheese curds. I don't want him to bring me flowers, I'll be quite happy if he brings me Lefty's cheese curds! Absolutely go get these. (If you are sad after these, I don't even know how to help you, and I hope you find some other happiness in your life, because these are ... /chef kiss, mwah, perfection.) (*I want to note that the reason I didn't get photos of them, was because I may have eaten them before the guy asked, "did you get a pic of them?" and I could only answer, "Oh. No. We'll have to go back.") So we are quite pleased with Lefty's, and look forward to many more years with them! read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Sausage and mushroom pan pizza - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

Very good my family and I really enjoyed the pizza it was so fresh and good the right amount of ingredients mixed it was absolutely fantastic!!!!!! read more

their deep dish is awesome! really enjoyed the veggie pizza, plus their crust and cheese is amazing!

Without a doubt, the best pizza in HP, by a long shot. Now, I get it, pizza is very personal, but if like food crispy crust, thin cheese, it's outstanding. The pan is also like a Burt's or Pequods. Owners are great people. They are also outstanding in their communication and accuracy in terms of readiness and delivery. Getting back to the pizza, both the pan and thin are the best I have ever had. read more

Best Italian beef I have ever had - juicy and with peppers yum. I wish it were closer to me.

Pizza was okay. I think it's just personal preference - a friend recommended this place as the best in Highland Park and I went in with high expectations. Service was friendly, deep dish pizza was a bit burnt on the outside and soggy in the middle. Flavor was a bit bland, I added red pepper flakes. For me, Malnati's is just better. But my friend swoons for this joint. read more

1. Mediocre, generic, gummy pizza. 2. Expensive for what you actually get. 3. Squirrely teenagers working the place--friendly, but just not "into" the customer-service thing. A restaurant can get away with two of the above, but not all three. I will only go back if desperate. YMMV. read more

Pan pizzas were fantastic for the adults and the thin-crust pizzas were fantastic for the little ones! The caramelized crust on the pan pizzas was phenomenal. We served 10 of their pizzas to a group of about 40 people and got a lot of "This is fantastic - where is this from?" comments. We got a wide variety of toppings and they use excellent ingredients and they don't overdo it on the cheese on the pan pizzas. For those seeking a comparison, the closest one would be Pequod's in Lincoln Park, which is very highly regarded. The service and responsiveness is fantastic. Worth noting - Lefty's is open for lunch and serves slices at lunch! Great location in the downtown Highland Park area. When you stop in, say hi to John (owner) - great guy and very active in the community! read more

Great Pizza. These guys make an incredibly tasty pizza. We've been there multiple times over the last few months and they consistently deliver a great pie. read more

Moved to Chicago 9 months ago and hadn't been a fan of Lou's deep dish but Lefty's pan pizza was really good. Crisp crust but not too hard and not too greasy!! read more

Lefty’s Pizza Kitchen - Small pan w/ pepperoni and sausage - Pizza Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

I am a fan of Burt's style pizza. I was a regular at each Pequod's location for many, many years. I've enjoyed Burt's over the years too. When I lived out of state, I learned how to make my own using second and third hand information from people who worked at Pequods. If you have never tried Burt's style pizza, this is a great spot to try. Lefty's is my new favorite. I prefer it to Pequod's in every respect but one: the height of the carmelized crust build up is a little on the short side. read more

Lefty's has the best pizza around. Always ultra fresh vegies, fabulous crust whether you get thin or thick, and best sausage around. The prep area is immaculate, as are the tables and seats. Wonderful outdoor dining is also available. The owner John does an amazing job keeping the quality at 5 stars. Thank you John for the delicious food and efficient and friendly service. read more

The loaded fries were amazing, the cheese and the seasoning were perfect so I would definitely recommend any of their fries. I got a premade slice of pepperoni pizza and it was good but it was a bit overcooked, the crust was a bit hard so next time I will for sure get a fresh pizza slice. But, the pepperoni toppings on the pizza was wonderful and they added extra pepperonis which was great. The employees that served me were also very helpful and kind so I would definitely recommend coming here because it is definitely worth it. read more

Really good pizza and great people behind the counter. I've met the owner and he's really good people. I can't help but wish is for a more flavor/spice. If I compare this excellent pizza to Il Forno's, I like the spicier (not HOT - spices) more tasty. But not to diminish great pizza Lefty's is not going to disappoint. I wish they'd offer a chicken "sausage," to menu, lean chicken seasoned to taste like sausage. That'd be awesome. Best of luck to Lefty's in Highland Park! Hope you're here a very long time. read more

Absolutely love Lefty's. It's a great addition to Highland Park. John, the owner is so kind and helped our title 1 school with a great fundraiser. He even donated money on top of what we made for the eat and earn event. My favs are the pan crust, the chopped salad and dang those cheese curds. So good! Lefty's is a staple for us and even more so after the kindness they have shown my family and our community. read more