Lefty's Chicago Pizzeria

My Dads from Chicago so we went in today and SUCH nostalgia. So much Chicago history. Dad was not a fan of the deep dish style since Chicago has thin crust cut in squares. Sicilian style was deep dish. Not the same lolBut it's tasty! He tried the beer and hopefully we'll try the Italian beef soon!Loved the subway CTA L train transit map above the doorway! Red line takes you right to Wrigley.

Service was awesome! Pizza was good too!Felt like deep dish Chicago style pizza. We haven't found one yet that really hits the spot like the pizzas in Chicago. We hoped that this will be our new go to place. The vibe is like Hodads when entering. Lots of stickers on walls and really fun ambiance. Location is in the "trendy" area of Hillcrest so it's a nice place to stop by and grab a slice or whole pizza when out or something else off the menu if you're not feeling like pizza. The service was great!! Very helpful since being there the first time. Pizza was thick and it was good. Definitely hit the spot when craving Chicago style type of pizza. Will have to try again in the future but we still feel we haven't found pizza like in Chicago. But then again we are in California so can't really compare.

their food is great! & they're really nice. BUT BEWARE. once you come close to closing time the mood shifts & they are very cold & rude.other than that, great pizza!

If you like Chicago style deep dish pizza, this is the place to go. Everything Chicago here. Dogs, thin and deep dish pies, italian beef and other sandwiches. The meaty pie is the best. something about the italian beef getting crispy on the edges. Sadly that's not an option if you're getting just a slice. I'm having the pepperoni, but if you're getting a whole pie to go, try the meaty pie! There are several tables outside on the sidewalk, and also a bar inside with a few seats. Order at the counter and a few minutes later...perfect quick and delicious lunch. I love the flavor and texture of the chicago crust. i don't know if it's cornmeal based or what but it's fantastic.

Absolutely amazing. Service, environment, and food. Was very accommodating and their customer service is phenomenal. Food was delicious and the portions are perfect. Would come back over and over again. You can basically build your own pizza and it's perfect for anyone. They do have other food besides pizza and salad. Look forward to coming back again and again.

RATING 3.5/5After a few recommendations to try the deep dish pizza here, I finally got around to stopping by . I phoned in my order for pick-up right at opening time and the young man who answered the phone was nice . I decided to try out their deep dish cheese pizza -- as it was my first time, I wanted to try out one of their most basic pizzas . I also ordered a side of their garlic cheesey bread, but I received regular garlic bread lol-- make sure you check your order before leaving the restaurant !The young man I spoke to on the phone said it would take about 30 minutes for order to be ready-- so I headed out about 10 minutes later as I live about 15 minutes away . Parking is a little hit or miss since this location is in the heart of north park . Once I arrived, the shop itself is so cute . There's a few dine in tables and a cozy outdoor seating area . I picked up my pizza which was fresh and steaming out of the box, sprinkled Parmesan on the deep dish, and headed back home !I did a car review as soon as I got home, and I'm not even going to lie-- I was a little underwhelmed . Because this was recommended to me, I was expecting sooo much more . I wanted a cheese pull like what you see in photos-- and sadly it did not happen lol . The crust itself was crisp and was fun to chew since it had a nice thin layer of fluff on the inside . The cheese was salty and the sauce was a little too sour for me . I decided to give it another try later that night . I reheated another slice lightly in the Airfryer, and then even microwaved it for another 30 seconds just to make sure the pizza was piping hot . I was still STRUGGLING to get that darn cheese pull !! The first few bites are just sauce and bread-- you need to keep eating because the majority of the cheese is near the end of the crust area . .. and yes, I did get the cheese pull I wanted after all !! The cheese and sauce balanced each other out more on the second slice as well . The deep dish pizza itself was good, but not what I was expecting . I would totally go back to try out their other goodies for sure-- and I recommend dining in or heating up your pizza at home before enjoying . I would still send people here to try it because everyone's tastebuds are different-- try it, you might like it more than I did (:I rated the deep dish in my car review without the cheese pull a 7.5/10 . I keep my rating the same when I heated the pizza up with a cheese pull at home a 7.5/10 .The garlic bread was garlic bread-- kinda bummed I didn't get the cheesey garlic bread, but that's okay . The marinara sauce it came with was soo good ! I actually wished that sauce was on the deep dish lol . I'll be back to give you another try soon, Lefty's !

Ouch...a recent visit to Lefty's forces me to leave a 2 star review.The last time I had deep dish pizza was in 2017 at Lefty's...you see, I only crave deep dish pizza every 5 years, so I was WAY overdue.My better half and I both agreed a trip to Lefty's was in order since we were already in San Diego and it had been AGES since either one of us had deep dish pizza. Like most restaurants post-pandemic, things have changed.Service was fine and we snagged a table on their outdoor patio. We ordered two slices...The slices were smaller, less full (thanks shrinkflation!) and the ingredients didn't taste fresh at all. Hate to say it..I'm pretty certain the tomato sauce was from a can which is downright sad. :( Even though I only eat deep dish pizza every 5 years, this visit doesn't reset the clock. I'm still overdue for some really good deep dish pizza.#sadface

THICCCCCC CRUST(5 stars) ... eating on a budget.I haven't had Lefty's Chicago Pizzeria since 2013 in San Francisco. It's been existing in SD but have always route my pizza craving to thin crust New York style pizza. But after a recent visit here, I forgot how thiccc pizza has good offerings as well. My second order of TooGoodToGo was from this place. My surprise bag was $3.99. Parking was extremely difficult due to its location being in North Park aka No Park. But they were on time with prepping the pickup. My surprise bag... in this case, my surprise box came with (3) slices of pizza. At first I thought it was one pizza, then I saw two, and then I saw three! 2 deep dish and 1 regular. The crust here is amazing! I could eat the crust by itself - drizzle some honey to cut some of the acidity from the tomato sauce and eat it with the crust. PEPPERONI DEEP DISH - yum! It was hard to see the pepperoni as it was deep in the dish. VEGGIE DEEP DISH - yum! Veggie pizza sounds boring BUT all the veggies really shined on this pie. Layers and layers of cheese, pizza sauce, and veggies. CHEESE THIN & CRISPY - it was basic, not super thin but on the thin side. Tasted average. What I liked about the pizza is that it didn't get hard and stale when saving the pizza in the fridge. After a quick warm up the pizza tasted exactly as it should.

Always a staple here in San Diego. If your an East Coaster and missing glimpses, tastes and smell from back home, get over here! Lefty's will definitely not let you down. Small storefront with a front patio. Grab a slice and a beer. Welcome Home. Daily pies made and sold by the slice in the front case. Or pop in for a sit down out front and relax. Tons of Chicago memorabilia to look at on the walls. They also have take out if you want to be the talk of your party. Get a giant pie and make everyone's day/night. Went for the Chicago polish dog this round. Warm bun, tasty sausage and fresh handful of fries. It's a win win here folks. Pizza is outta this world delicious! It will satisfy all the cravings you're having. Only downside is there is only one disabled parking spot by the front. And since all the bike lanes have went in around this area, prepare to circle the block a few times. Parking is street only and that is the only downfall if you don't live in the area. Take an Uber here if it's not too far.

I haven't been to Lefty's in forever; it's still just as good as I remember it. I ordered a farmer's market deep dish pie and it hit my craving, like a back scratcher gets an itch. It was delicious and extremely filling. A slice would have sufficed, but I was feeling overly confident in my ability to eat. I also ordered their artichoke spinach bread and it was transcendently satisfying. I will be coming back for this bread again and again. Paid $60.80 (with tip) and it was worth every penny.