Paul K.
Yelp
This is still one of my favorite pizzas in the city. There is only one other place in Chicago (as far as I know) that has larger pizza slices than Pete's, and that is Papa Ray's (Sheridan and Lawrence).
Pete's is one of few restaurants where you can get authentic Chicago deep-dish pizza by the slice. Everywhere else, like Giordano's or Lou Malnati's, it has be ordered as a whole pie and is twice the price even if it's an "individual" size.
Just about everything on the menu is generously portioned, however some of the desserts I think are too expensive ($8 for chocolate cafe and carrot cake, and around $5 for a small tiramisu). The gelato and smoothies are more reasonably priced. I think one of the reasons they are able to charge such high prices on their desserts is because so much of their business comes from Loyola students. The students are given a "Rambler" meal card (which Pete's accepts) and they only have a certain amount of time to use the funds or lose them, which makes the desserts a popular option for students to burn their monthly meal money. Another draw for Loyola students (and staff) is that they get free fountain drinks.
The sandwiches (by lofty Chicago standards) I would say are okay, nothing special. One menu item I particularly dislike is their hamburgers. It has a strange onion aftertaste, and I hate onion. I suspect they use onion powder in the burger patties.
Their pasta dishes are pretty good, as is the chili. But as others have mentioned, the real draw here is the pizza.
I love the interior. It is quite spacious inside (the high ceilings and large windows are good for claustrophobia) and never too crowded. In all the many times I've dined in here, I've never been unable to get a seat, and I'm often able to get a booth all to myself. This is not to say that they don't get busy but it can be very random and unpredictable which days and times. You may find on some Friday and Saturday nights they're slow, but then on a Wednesday or a Thursday they might get deluged with customers for no apparent reason.
If you are dining in, it's mostly self-service. You place your order at the front counter and a staff member will bring it to your table, after which you're on your own. I prefer it this way, with no perky server asking you how your food is while you're mid-bite.
The cafe is never too crowded so they won't chase you out if you're a squatter using the free WiFi. They're also open very late (before the pandemic it was 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, and midnight every other day). I believe there are only three days of the year that they close: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.
Here are my minor complaints about Pete's...
1) There is one 40" flatscreen TV in the dining area which is always on, but there's no volume on it. There's also music constantly playing inside the cafe, and despite my repeated requests, no staff member has ever been able to figure out how to turn off the music and turn up the volume on the TV. So if you ever want to stop in and watch a game, it's video only. (Dec. 2021, EDIT: they appear to have fixed this issue, the TV is audible inside the dining area).
2) They do not have a liquor license nor do they allow BYOB. Their official reason is that they are too close to a large college campus. However there are other BYOB restaurants near Loyola (and DePaul) so this doesn't make sense.
3) Each Thursday, they unveil a new "Pasta of the Week", however I'm finding that too often they only use veggies. I like my pastas with some type of meat (either beef, chicken or sometimes seafood such as shrimp) so I feel like they skimp on this. They also unveil a different SOW (Slice of the Week) on Thursdays, but it, along with the weekly pasta special, sometimes does not run the entire week. They might only sell it until Monday or Tuesday before abruptly pulling it. It's always annoying whenever they do this.
4) Before the pandemic, they used to sell Margarita pizza by the slice which was really good. They have since pulled it and replaced it with a feta cheese and vegetable pizza which I have never quite taken a liking to.
5) I wish they would get rid of their sausage pizza slices - it is way too heavy and seems to sell poorly.
6) In the past, they have offered a taco or chicken alfredo pizza as their slice of the week and both are really good, but despite the popularity, they offer these much too infrequently.
7) Sometimes they keep their pizzas-by-the-slice out too long to the point the pizzas become unappetizing. I think they need to find ways to rotate them more often.
Parking in the area is scarce to nonexistent, but it's very convenient to public transportation. Only 50 yards east of the Granville stop on the Red Line, and Granville has bus stops at Broadway (west) and Sheridan (east).