When you eat gluten-free in Palo Alto , you can still enjoy an authentic Chicago deep-dish pizza, as long as it is made with gluten free pizza dough. But as you probably already know, you also have to be careful about your topping choice, as sometimes toppings can contain hidden gluten as well. Whether you’re dining in at the pizzeria or ordering pizza delivery, mention that you need your whole pizza to be gluten-free before placing your order.

Watch this video to learn how to select gluten-free vegetables, and to learn where gluten can hide in common veggie preparations.

Whether you are hosting a kid’s birthday celebration, a graduation party, or an informal summer get-together with friends, you can’t go wrong with a pizza party in Palo Alto . With pizza catering, it’s easy to build pies that every guest will love, and since pizza is easy to serve, you won’t have much mess to clean up afterwards. This is especially convenient if you host the pizza party in your own home. The tips below will help you throw the perfect party featuring Chicago-style pizza.

Ask Guests for Topping Preferences

Pepperoni is the most popular pizza topping in America, but not every guest will enjoy it. To ensure that you have selections that all your guests will love, send out a quick email to ask everyone you’ve invited about their preferred pizza toppings. Also, leave space for them to indicate any food allergies or sensitivities—you can order vegetarian or gluten-free pizzas, but you’ll need to know ahead of time.

Provide Proper Seating and Utensils

Deep-dish pizza is not meant to be eaten with your hands. The unique crust and thick layer of toppings require a knife and fork. Make sure that you have enough plates, knives, and forks for each of your guests, and even a few extra. Also, make sure that everyone has a seat with a table nearby, so they can easily cut their pizza. Everyone doesn’t have to be in the same place in the house, but every seat should be comfortable.

Select Appetizers, Sides, and Desserts

Although one slice of deep-dish pizza can be a hearty meal, complete with veggies and nutrients, you should still have a few appetizers and sides available to your guests. Garlic bread and buffalo wings are pizza party staples that pair perfectly with any pie you choose. For a side salad, you can order a huge communal portion of Caesar salad, spinach salad, or the pizzeria’s house salad and guests can serve themselves. For dessert, cheesecake or cookies are both great finishes to a hearty, delicious pizza meal.

Pizza took on its modern form more than 100 years ago in Italy, and since then it has spread all over the world. In the U.S., many different cities and regions have their own local versions of pizza, but the two most famous are New York style and Chicago style pizza (also called deep-dish pizza). In Northern California, you can enjoy Chicago-style pizza near Palo Alto at Pizz’a Chicago . Read on to learn more about what makes this type of pizza special.

The Crust

“Pizza pie” is a common term for a whole pizza, but it doesn’t really describe most types of pizza accurately. Italian and New York style pizzas are actually flatbreads with a thin layer of toppings. Chicago pizza, however, is baked in a round pan similar to a pie pan—this is the “deep dish” that gives the pizza its other name. The buttery, rich dough is spread on the bottom of the oiled pan and also worked up the sides, and it is partially baked before toppings are added. It should be crispy, flaky, and rich.

The Assembly

Most styles of pizza are assembled in this order: crust, sauce, cheese, toppings. At a Chicago-style pizzeria, however, the construction order is slightly different. Deep dish pizzas require longer times in the oven than thin-crust pizzas, and if the delicious mozzarella cheese was on top and exposed to direct heat for the full baking time, it would burn or become rubbery. Thus, Chicago style pizzas are built in the following order: crust, cheese, toppings, tomato sauce.

The Toppings

Thin slices of pizza can only hold so many toppings before they collapse or get soggy. But a deep-dish pizza has room for a larger quantity of toppings, because the crust is sturdier. Also, it is meant to be eaten with knife and fork instead of with your hands, so a deep-dish slice can come piled high with different delicious ingredients. At Pizz’a Chicago, we offer a wide range of specialty pies, including vegetarian options, packed with different delicious ingredient combinations.

Chicago pizza might be the most famous Windy City dish available near Palo Alto, but it’s not the only one. At Pizz’a Chicago, we also serve hearty sandwiches inspired by our hometown favorites. When you want a taste of Chicago but aren’t in the mood for a deep-dish pizza, try one of these sandwiches.

Our Chicago hot dogs feature all-beef frankfurters from the Vienna company, Chicago’s most beloved hot dog maker. They come with a side of fries and, in true Chicago fashion, no ketchup (though it’s available if you insist). For a heartier meal, order the Oprah, named after the beloved TV personality whose studios are located just west of the Loop. This classic meatball sandwich is topped with melted provolone and delicious red onions. Lighter appetites will enjoy the Ferris Bueller, which features roasted turkey, tomato your choice of Provolone or Swiss cheese, with mustard, mayo, and in a nod to our California location, fresh sprouts. You can also order any sandwich with your pizza delivery order and we’ll bring it right to your door!

Diners searching for healthy or gluten-free options in Palo Alto don’t always think of visiting a pizzeria. But if you make smart topping choices and exercise moderation by limiting how many slices you eat, pizza can fit into a healthy diet. A slice of Chicago-style pizza loaded with veggies is also packed with vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients. Some of the potential health benefits of eating pizza include:

Packing All Food Groups into One Meal

The FDA recommends a balanced diet for adults that includes foods from every major food group every day. The food groups are: fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy. One slice of pizza has foods from every single group! The tomatoes in the sauce are fruits, and you can also select popular fruit toppings such as pineapple. Fresh veggie topping options include bell peppers, zucchini, onions, and spinach. Meats such as sausage, ham, and pepperoni provide protein, or you can order mushrooms if you’re a vegetarian. And of course, the delicious cheese rounds out the food groups with dairy.

Consuming Essential Nutrients

On a more basic level, every meal you eat should ideally contain protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Protein, found in both the cheese and meat toppings of a pizza, aids in muscle development. Fat, despite its bad reputation, is essential because your body needs it to absorb fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K. Like protein, fat can be found in the meat and cheese on your pizza. Carbohydrates, such as those in the pizza crust, fuel your body during heavy exertions and exercise. Even gluten-free diners need carbohydrates, which are still found in the crust of gluten-free pizza.

Getting Essential Vitamins and Minerals

For proper bone health, you need to consume a certain quantity of calcium. The cheese on a slice of pizza has more than enough to meet your daily requirements. The tomatoes in the pizza sauce also contain many vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin B6, and vitamin E. Other toppings, especially vegetables, will provide even more nutrient density.

To throw a fun graduation party that your teenager or college grad will enjoy, you need to do more than just find a venue and a caterer serving Palo Alto. You need to create a fun atmosphere and include your soon-to-be-grad in the planning process. Throwing a pizza party is a great way to ensure that the vibe stays casual and the catering is easy.

Once you’ve set your date and thought about your pizza options, you’ll need to pick a theme and some entertainment for the party . Watch this video for tips on a planning a graduation party. Remember, ordering pizza is always a great way to make sure you don’t have to deal with complicated catering orders.

With the school year and the sports season drawing to a close soon, it’s time to start planning your end-of-season banquet. One of the first things you’ll need to do, after securing a venue, is to find a caterer serving Palo Alto who can provide a variety of delicious food that will accommodate all guests and their dietary preferences and restrictions. Pizza is a great option, since it is easy to serve and sure to please. Use the tips below to help plan your banquet.

Select Your Venue

The choice of venue will depend on the size of your group. Count the number of athletes on your team, and determine how many guests you will allow them to bring to the banquet. This will determine your maximum attendance size. If you start planning early, you might get your RSVPs back before you have to select a space. Whether you want to holding the banquet in someone’s home or at a local pizzeria, you need to plan it early to secure the venue.

Note Guests’ Dietary Preferences and Restrictions

To make sure that everyone can enjoy the catering, you need to collect information on their dietary preferences. This will be easier if you provide a place for them to note dietary restrictions on their RSVP cards, or on an online form if you are using one. This will allow you to order gluten-free pizza dough, vegetarian pies that omit meat toppings, and other delicious pizzas to satisfy your athletes and their families. Ask the caterer to label each pizza, especially the gluten-free ones, because gluten free pizza dough looks the same as regular pizza dough.

Order Starters and Sides

Although one slice of pizza can contain all the essential food groups—grain, fruit, veggies, dairy, protein—you should still serve other dishes at your end-of-season banquet. Classic pizzeria appetizers such as calamari and stuffed mushrooms are always crowd pleasers, and many diners enjoy a salad with their pizza. And don’t forget to reward the athletes with a delicious dessert!