The Oregano’s in your suburban strip mall is a copy. This is the original: Mark Russell’s 1993 tribute to his father’s Chicago pizza days, set in an early-1930s adobe farmhouse on Scottsdale Road, crammed with midcentury memorabilia and patio waits that nobody seems to mind.
The stuffed deep dish is the calling card, and the Pizza Cookie — half-baked, in a pan, under vanilla ice cream — was invented here. Portions are oversized, so plan on leftovers.
When to go: weeknights, if you want a short wait. On weekends, put your name in and accept the free pizza bread passed around the patio.