DeLand restaurant named to Washington Post’s list of best Chicago-style pizzas in Florida
A popular DeLand eatery landed a spot on The Washington Post’s list of Best Regional Pizzas in Florida.
Determined by an analysis of more than 7.5 million Yelp reviews of pizzerias nationwide, DoBro’s in DeLand ranked number three on the list of top-spots for Chicago-style pizza within the Sunshine State.
The family-owned Italian restaurant, known for its indulgent menu of homemade dishes and hand-tossed pizzas, has been serving the DeLand community for the last 12 years. The “Dough-Bro's,” Philip and Thomas Knott, run the popular pizza spot alongside their mother, Linda, and Philips’s wife, Meghan. The local eatery was created in hopes of bringing a family-oriented, casual Italian dining experience to Volusia County.
“Both my husband and brother-in-law watched their father create insane things from not very many ingredients, so they brought that to our restaurant,” DoBro’s co-owner Meghan Knott said in a phone interview. “We also make everything from scratch and make everything with the kind of quality that people want to be served.”
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The beloved pizza shop is a popular spot among locals, a loyal community of pizza-lovers who aren’t shy about sharing their DoBro’s experiences online.
“The best pizza in DeLand. Been ordering here since 2015 and never had a complaint. Love their soups. Love their Chicago pies,” one Facebook user said, while another noted, “Food and staff are amazing! We love this little slice of heaven.”
DoBro’s menu includes an array of Italian favorites, from calzones and stromboli to lasagna, eggplant parmigiana and fettucine alfredo — not to mention an entire menu of prepared-to-order, gluten-free selections. The eatery also special orders the rolls for its Chicago beef sandwich, as well as its Fontanini sausage, directly from Chicago.
However, it’s no secret that the eatery’s pizza menu is the star of the show, with options ranging from spinach and mushroom pizza to veggie, Greek and, of course, the famous Classic Chicago Pizza.
Offering 8- and 12-inch, deep dish pizzas, as well as traditional hand-tossed and gluten free, the Classic Chicago Pizza is customizable per your choice of veggies, meats and cheeses, but comes prepared with a tasty layering of mozzarella cheese, sausage and pepperoni, mushrooms and onions, roasted red peppers and tomato sauce.
Chicago-style pizza on its own is ranked as the third most popular style among Americans, according to The Post’s research analysis, but what makes Chicago-style pizza so good?
“You have to have that thick crust with the crunch and the softness,” Knott noted. “It’s a thicker crust and fluffy but still crunchy. They put the dough first, then the cheese then the pizza toppings and then the sauces on top. So, it’s kind of like an upside-down pizza … . Personally, I’m kind of a sauce snob, so the sauce is always huge — and fresh ingredients. We always use fresh mushrooms — never canned — and dice green peppers and onions fresh every day.”
DoBro’s Restaurant is located at 803 W. New York Ave., DeLand, and is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. It's closed on Sunday. For information, call 386-279-0003 or visit dobrosdeland.com.
Helena Perray is the restaurant and dining writer for The Daytona Beach News-Journal. A New Jersey native and passionate storyteller, she can be contacted at hperray@gannett.com. Follow her on Instagram and Facebook. Support local journalism by subscribing
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida restaurant named to Washington Post's Best Regional Pizzas list
