It just works: Chicago Dog Deep Dish pizza collab from Portillo’s, Lou Malnati’s surprisingly delicious

It all seemed so easy.

When we got word that Lou Malnati’s and Portillo’s, two iconic names in Chicagoland dining, were teaming up to make a Chicago-style hot dog deep dish pizza, I was salivating.

Not because of the pizza; it sounded like an abomination in theory. But I was all-in on eating one so I could write a story eviscerating it.

How dare they do this to two beloved Chicago food staples? Outrage! The indignity!

So I went to a Lou’s in Schaumburg last week and ordered one. And I ate it.

And you know what? This unholy union actually works. It turns out you can put neon green relish on a pizza.

It was like a marriage of two people who have very little in common, but somehow they’re good together.

All the ingredients from the two classics are there.

The pizza starts with your Lou’s deep dish crust as a base, buttered and brushed with poppy seeds. The chunky tomato base is topped with cheese, sliced hot dogs, diced sport peppers, pickles and onions, relish and celery salt. A thin drizzle of yellow mustard provides the finishing touch.

The sliced hot dogs are the star. Cooking them in the pizza oven and getting a little crust on all that surface area brings out their flavor far better than steaming ever could. The drizzle of mustard, which I’m hearing anecdotally is people’s biggest potential turnoff, brings it all together and provides the dish’s identity.

Because while it looks like a pizza, it definitely tastes like a hot dog.

That’s been the sentiment from other guests, our server Taylor Davis said.

“Honestly, people have been very surprised. It’s definitely different,” she said. “It’s been selling better than I thought it would.”

Manager Peter Chatel said they made the pizza for the staff to try before adding it to the menu for a limited time.

“Everyone was shocked by how good it tastes,” he said.

The pizza follows in the footsteps of another “Crosstown Collab” between the two well-known eateries, who previously partnered on the Portillo’s x Lou Malnati’s Italian Beef Deep Dish pizza. It featured Portillo’s Italian beef with either sweet peppers or hot giardiniera.

The Chicago Dog Deep Dish pizza is available through August (or while supplies last, whatever that means) only at Lou’s 21 dine-in locations, where it can also be ordered for carryout or delivery.

Suburban full-service locations can be found in Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Lincolnwood, Naperville, Oakbrook Terrace and Schaumburg.