P.H.A.T. Pizza

Born and raise in Chicago. I’m a Chicago pizza snob through and through. This place’s pizza reminds me of Lou Malnati’s in Chicago. That’s a great pizza chain so compliments all around for PHAT pizza.
We went here a couple of weeks ago for dinner and we were surprised that we were the only customers. Although we were skeptical, we’d driven about 25 minutes and hungry so we sat down and ordered a combination pizza. It was perfect. The owner was super nice (I wish I could remember his name), and we had a nice conversation with him. I really hope more people frequent this place. It’s fantastic, genuine Chicago pizza and great service, too. We’ll be back for sure.

We live literally one block from a place that’s famous for deep dish pizza so it took us some time to make it to PHAT. I’m really glad we did because their stuffed pizza is a different style altogether. PHAT describes it like Zachary’s in Berkeley, meaning a thin layer of crust on the bottom, toppings, another layer of crust, and tomatoes across the top.
I ordered the House Special Stuffed pizza and liked it very much. For one, it spoke to the OCD in me because it was so neatly arranged. It was like looking at a cheesy layer cake. There was a beautiful layer of smooshed sausage, followed by layers of green peppers, and onion. I actually couldn’t detect the top layer of crust. If it was there, great; if it wasn’t, I didn’t miss it much. The top layer of diced tomato was unexpectedly delicious. I’m usually a fan of tomato sauce but the diced tomato was even better. It added moisture and the bite of sweet and tangy tomatoes. The crust was buttery but not overly rich and held up so well.
A medium pie was more than enough for the two of us, leaving three slices leftover for a small meal the next day. It heated up great in a toaster oven. These are worthwhile calories, for sure.

Ooh… I’m gonna take some home tonight
Ah…Chicago Deep Dish made just right
Ooh…great pies in Y. L. found
P.H.A.T. Classic Pizza
You make my Unilocaler world go round!
Hey, I’m just a fatty lad
Who knows good food from bad
And I’m not so fond of pizza from BJ’s
Went to P.H.A.T Pizza with my wifey
And to avoid marital strifey
We ordered half Classic and half pep for our entrée
Just OK the pep and cheese
But pizza sauce was sure to please
Tomato chunks so fresh, best pizza sauce I’ve had!
Crust light and tasty too
Not over-​buttered bread-​y goo
Smiles abound for this finicky lad
C’mon…I’m gonna take some home tonight
Ah…Chicago Deep Dish made just right
Ooh…great pies in Y. L. found
P.H.A.T. Classic Pizza
You make my Unilocaler world go round!
Classic pizza perfect blend
Spinach, mushrooms taste transcend
Don’t mess with it by adding any meat
Pepperoni too salty
Stick to veggies and you’ll see
Happy chemicals from your brain secrete
C’mon…I’m gonna take some home tonight
Ah…Chicago Deep Dish made just right
Ooh…great pies in Y. L. found
P.H.A.T. Classic Pizza
You make my Unilocaler world go round!

Six months ago, I ordered the House Special stuffed pizza. I enjoyed the pizza but I did not enjoy the crust. I thought the crust tasted like crackers. I came back to try The Classic stuffed pizza with added sausage. I expected the same crust. I was pleasantly surprised that they had changed the crust. The crust is now crispy and buttery. The crust is not greasy and perfectly compliments the toppings. I love the crust!
The owner’s mother served us. She was super friendly. We asked her about the crust. She said that customers had told them the crust did not taste like the pizza crust in Chicago and that it was lacking butter flavor. Her son went to work and after several experiments, came up with the current crust.
I like the texture of the cheese, the spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes and the spices in the The Classic pizza. Food that tastes great is a perfect harmony of flavors with each of the flavors complimenting each other. PHAT’s pizza fits this description. Everything blends together to produce the perfect pizza.
PHAT’s pizza is the best pizza I’ve tasted! I’ll be back to try the Hawaiian pizza.

I moved from Chicago last summer and I’ve searched the OC high and low for a pizza that would give me a way to continue my love affair with Chicago style pizza. P.H.A.T. is the real deal. I’m still on the hunt for something to compare to Lou Malnatis (don’t think it’s possible), but this place does it right! The sauce… A+ The Crust A+
I will be sharing this find with all my friends.

If you find yourself looking for some pizza but crave something different? Try the Chicago style deep dish pizza. The amount of cheese inside is insane! The tomato sauce has that fresh taste to it.
I would recommend this one to my mama! And she is one picky person!

If you’re looking for a true pizza pie, you need to come to PHAT Pizza. The pizza was so tasty and you could tell the ingredients were very fresh. We ordered the small, House Special deep dish and it was awesome. The crust was great, not soggy at all but perfectly baked. Don’t even bother going to BJ’s.
This place is small, about 10 tables. The owner is a sweet lady, very attentative and really cares about the customers. I needed something quick for the baby to eat and she promptly heated up some chicken pieces for her to have. The chicken was also really good.
Tip: order your pizza before going in to dine, cause it takes about 40 minutes to bake. But if you just show up, it’s well worth the wait.

Do you have a Big-​Ass crave on Chicago Style Pizzas? I promise you get that here! BTW ! I mean Chicago-​style stuffed pizzas!
Thanks to my friend Francesca who one day posted their Chicago trip on her Facebook page it got me hungry for Chicago stuffed Pizza! I had this place booked marked awhile back when ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ Slater’s had a long wait, which I had to find an alternative place to eat (because we weren’t gonna wait an 1 ½ at Slater’s) I found Fitness Grill and PHat Pizza at the same time but had to try out Fitness first.
Now for the real deal Pizza and that is PHAT Pizza! We ordered a Small 16″ for two stuffed pizza with jalapeño’s, pesto, pepperoni, and extra cheese. You can create your own or go with whats on the menu.
Our order took about 40 minutes, that’s ok because, really though that’s how long it takes to prepare these awesome pies like in Chicago made fresh! We drove about 3 miles to find a Sears Outlet to kill some time and to window shop on some appliances. Then we get back here just in time for Pizza time!
When we got our order wow!!! looks just like a Chi-​town pizza! Were so ready to sink our teeth in! Once our server cut us a slice Omg! the stretch of cheese was a site for sore eyes! the taste of the pizza sauce was amazing! the spices were poppin! chunks of tomatoes in the mix, the pesto that we added was beded within, topped with added jalepenos to pack a punch!
Overall well worth trip! To top it off friendly service, we even gave them big props how awesome the pizza was after we devoured the whole thing! We definitely left here with P.H.A.T. Joy!!!

Whoa, ANOTHER Chicago-​style stuffed pizza joint in OC? Yes please.
Even if Unilocalers hadn’t been spouting lines like «better than Tony’s», I’d have tried this place immediately.
A friend and I split a large stuffed pie with Pepperoni, Sausage, Canadian Bacon, and Garlic. As is customary with these things, we called ahead because it can take up to an hour to cook a real stuffed pizza.
Hooo-​eee, did that pie smell good. Like a really good lasagna — the sauce was thick, chunky, and delectably rich. I could swim in that sauce, that’s how good it is. The pepperoni and sausage were also big wins. I can’t say how rare it is to find good quality sausage on pizza. Though it pains me to say it, Domino’s sliced italian sausage beats 99% of the pizza joints on the planet… not so PHAT Pizza. The sausage is perfect for the pie. Just the right amount of richness without tasting fatty or funky, not overwhelming. It played very well with the other toppings (besides the garlic, which was sprinkled so sparingly over the top that we didn’t even notice it — what a total waste of $ 2 and a crime against garlic).
The crust was a big letdown for me, though. It’s thin, crispy, and crackery — so the texture is spot-​on, but I found it tasted almost exactly like a saltine cracker. It was bland and didn’t really contribute much to the pie other than a bit of texture. The cheese was also on the bland side. I will concede, however, that the sauce was so damn good, that it hides the natural sweetness and saltiness of the mozzarella, but if that’s the case, then they need to use a lot more cheese to balance it out. There was maybe ¼″ of cheese on there, which is surprisingly low for a Chicago-​style stuffed pie.
Overall, the pizza was very good. And that sauce — MY GOD. Give me a pint of sauce and I will drink it like a milkshake.
So is it better than Tony’s, as so many Unilocalers are claiming? No. And possibly hell no. I personally prefer Tony’s, but I would be willing to concede that «PHAT is as good as Tonys», depending on your individual taste. For one, Tony’s crust, while a little thicker, is rich and buttery and herby and amazing in it’s own right. Tony’s cheese is also thicker, tastier, and contributes more to the pie as a whole. On the other hand, PHAT’s sauce is outright tongue-​sex… and that most certainly counts for something.
For the most part, when I crave a stuffed pizza, I’ll probably still head to Tony’s Little Italy, but PHAT is good enough that I’ll happily switch off once in a while for a change of pace.
P. S. They take Amex — so bonus points for that.

I love to eat pizza. Tried this place because everyone was raving about how this place is so good for Chicago style deep dish pizza. Went there, ordered the Chicago’s Finest pizza added some sausage and pepperoni to it. When it came out it looked super tasty! Took a bite of the slice and it was good, but not the best. The crust was very plain, with NO taste at all! I felt like I needed some ranch or garlic butter to dip it in. Totally turned me off in the end. The pizza’s are really filling, so after I had one slice I was pretty content (with all those layer after layer of toppings and cheese), but then I had another half of a slice and then was super full…
They open at 3pm! What the heck! What if you want this for lunch??? So only get there for dinner folks.

I have been on a mission to find the best Chi Town Deep Dish Pie in Southern California. I have found it at PHAT pizza. I ordered a Chicago FINEST, which consist of spinach and mushroom. A small Pie was able to feed 3 malnourished people. You have to wait 45 minutes (bake time) in order to DEVOUR the greatness of this PIE. So my tip is to call ahead to place your order if you decide to dine in. Now on to the PIE. The texture of the crust was cooked perfectly — flaky and crispy. On top of the crust comes a fantastic blend of their home made chunky, sweet tomato sauce, spinach, mushroom and of course CHEESE. I only wished they had wings and alcohol but they told me that they were just starting out.
Oh baby, how I yearn for this PIE every day!

I am a biggest fan of deep dish pizza. I’ve been going to Tony’s little italy for a while, but their crust is little salty. After seeing PHAT pizza on Unilocal,i gave it a try and I’m glad I did. I find this place better than Tony’s Italy. Their sauce is tangy, chunky, and spices are just right.
I had hard time finding this place because of their sign is not so visible. It’s in the same mall as Chili’s in blue building next to supercuts!!!
ABSOLUTELY love this place!!! I will be coming to this one from now on.

Who likes Pizza. raise your hand!
Kids like pizza, grandma’s like pizza, and I love pizza!
I tried this place based on the higher reviews on Unilocal.This place is not too far from me. I ordered the thin pizza. The crust was dry and a little burned. There was nothing spectacular here and the most memorable moment was when the guy at the register used a profanity in front of a little child. Like I said, Kids like pizza. A pizza place is bound to have families and kids around. I really don’t appreciate the language. I really want to take off an extra star for serving a pizza like that. but what makes me more appalled is that the guy at the register is stupid enough or inconsiderate to the extent that he didn’t care about the parents or the child enough to use a little decency. Even after the parents gave a look, he didn’t realize it.
So, a slightly burned pizza happens. It is not the owner’s fault about the profanity, but I would like the owner to know those parents obviously didn’t appreciate and nor did I. I am writing this review excluding the cash register guy.
AOK, but nothing spectacular for me. I would never reccomend this place. If you live close by it might be ok.

Being from Chicago, I had high hopes of finding a local place that could fulfill my Chicago pizza cravings. PHAT will satisfy those cravings but there is room for improvement.
It is definitely a stuffed pizza ala Nancy’s or Giordano’s vs a standard deep dish like Lou’s or Gino’s.
My review may seem a bit negative, but I want to give constructive feedback in the hopes that the restaurant will become even better and satisfy my cravings for years to come. Nothing below will stop me from going back in the future.
Overall, the taste was good. The sausage had a definitive Italian Sausage flavor and true to Chicago style deep dish, it was a slab of sausage that covered the entire piece vs being crumbled. The sauce was good, maybe a little too soupy, but it had good flavor and nice chunks of tomato.
The crust, however, was a bit lacking. It managed to maintain its crispiness on the bottom, which I give them kudos for, but, the overall flavor of the crust was a little lacking. This was not evident while eating the bulk of the pizza, but it became evident once I reached the outer edge. It just lacked any overall compelling flavor. It reminded me more of a thin crust kind of taste in Chicago rather than deep dish. Some might say «cardboard» but I would not go that far, it just wasn’t as tasty as I would have liked.
Overall, PHAT is a strong contender. I like it more than Tony’s Little Italy, but I think Chicago Pasta House in Moreno Valley might be a bit better. I’d like to see cornmeal introduced to crust and maybe some butter as well. Still two thumbs up for a little pizzeria in Yorba Linda filling a gap this Chicagoan’s heart.

SO yummy! The stars aligned and we were finally able to try this pizza tonight and it did not disappoint. My best piece of advice if you’re wanting to try PHAT is to plan ahead. This is definitely not a pizza on a whim type of place as they tend to get very busy — especially on weekends. We tried to call in a to go order on Saturday night and they were running at about 2 hours. Today, we planned way ahead and called at 3:15 for our 5pm pizza pick up and it all worked out flawlessly, however when the hubby was in there picking up he heard them tell someone that they were at about a 2 hour wait again.
We ordered a half cheese, half sausage pizza. My hubby came in the house with the box and the first thing he said was, «man this is heavy»! Everything seemed really fresh and the chunky tomato topping was to die for. Because this was our first time we weren’t really sure how the whole stuffed pizza thing worked. The sausage part of our pizza was crazy as there was a complete layer of sausage stuffed in the pizza. None of these little sausage bits that you normally get on a pizza. A little too much sausage for me as I’m not a meat lover but for someone who really loves meat, this is for you! All in all, 5 stars, definitely worth the wait and extra planning. We’ll be back and we’ll probably order some thin crust for the kids, too!

I have been her three times and each time got better. I have eaten all that Chicago has to offer: Ginos, Lou Malnattis, Uno, Giordanos. And yes, I had the best of NY at 20 different Rays, and LA’s Mozza, Ortica and Santa Monica Pizza. Yes, I went to Rome, Venice, Florence and Sicily. I still don’t consider myself an expert but i know these pizza pies taste like.
You want excellent pizza pie? PHAT is it. i read each review and the bozos who thought they know a good pie obviously are not foodies, haven’t actually been to other cities or are just haters.
Wait? ever been to either Unos in Chigaco? an hour is average. If you want fast pizza, go to a cheap joint like pizza hut. Quality and flavor take time. Would you go to French Laundry and bitch for a slow meal? I took 3 hours at Laundry and felt that was fast. Go to Paris and see what a 4 hour meal is like. Point is good food is not fast food so dont’ confuse the two.
Crust, sauce, taste — all delightful here. I even challenged the chef for an all veg no cheese pizza and guess what. he nailed it. my friend had a cheese allergy and was a vegan. know any place that can do that and nail it ??
Yes, it is best at the restaurante BUT even reheated, it was better than most other places fresh and hot. Try it, you will love it.

We were hungry and this place got the job done. We left no longer hungry. Other than that… I just don’t get it? Maybe BF and I aren’t fans of deep dish? I don’t know.
Arrived around 6. There is a 45 minute wait for a pizza to be made. They tell you that you can leave and go wherever you want and they will call you when it is ready. We had nowhere to go, so we waited it out. Aside from pizza, they offer two different salads — caesar and house. We were hungry so we ordered the salads. It would be nice if they had other appetizers to order instead of salad.
The salads were okay. Nothing special though. The pizza was out within the 45 minutes. It was really big, we had ordered a small Chicago’s Finest, which has spinach & mushrooms. It wasn’t very hot. The crust was hard. Difficult to cut through.
The flavor was really just tomatoes. I think it could have used something else, but I don’t know what that is. Perhaps if we wanted to try this again we should get something with meat instead of veggie? Maybe the meat adds more flavor. I would definitely call ahead though!

Out of my own selfishness I am reluctant to write this review. When you find a new hidden gem, the first instinct is to keep it quiet in order to stave off the eventual crowds, lines and wait times. But I couldn’t stop myself. The food is too good and the proprietors too nice to keep from sharing more about Yorba Linda’s newest pizza joint and inevitable city favorite.
In a word, magnificent. Easily in my top 5 pizza places and clearly now sits at the top of the lot for pizza places in Yorba Linda and possibly all of Orange County. Highly recommended — quality ingredients, incredible taste, friendly and hospitable owners. A couple tips:
Location — It’s located in the center on the South-​West corner of Yorba Linda & Imperial in the strip of shops behind Chili’s — next to a UPS Store. Currently the name on the sign IS NOT P.H.A.T., so if you see a pizza place, that’s the one.
Call Ahead — Like any good Chicago style pizza (BJ’s doesn’t count), the pizza takes 30-​to-​45 minutes to cook, so plan accordingly.
A welcome addition in the future would be delivery. They’ve only been open for 3 months, so my guess is that delivery will be coming eventually.
Enjoy! We did.

Chicago style deep dish pizza. This thing was layered with fresh ingredients and baked to a hot, cheesy delicious pie. Chicago style pizza is definitely not your typical Domino’s or Pizza Hut delivery. It was well worth the wait, IMO.
Here are some of my suggestions so you can enjoy your PHAT Pizza experience to the fullest:
–CALL AHEAD! It takes 40 – 45 minutes to bake one pizza. So why wait? Call in your order and stroll in when you’re ready to devour the goodness.
–EAT IT WHILE IT“S HOT! The downside to the layered, baked Chicago style is that the crust doesn’t stay crispy very long. The pizza is best when it is fresh out of the oven. After an hour or so, it tends to get a little soggy. (We suggested corn-​meal crust to the owners, which may help this flaw – they said they would consider it!)
–BRING YOUR APPETITE! One piece is super filling! But it’s also so good you want to keep eating. So just be ready for a feast!
Plus points to PHAT Pizza for being family owned and operated, such sweet service, and a delicious meal.

I’ve ALWAYS wanted to try chicago style pizza and im not talking about Bj’s bullshit LOL So when I was lurking Unilocal for the lastest reviews popping up, I saw P.H.A.T pizza and im like hmmmmmm. I started reading the reviews and looking at the pics and instantly I was happy to see something that looked like Lou Malnati’s in Chicago mmmm.
Ok so I call in an order thinking it can be ready before my date comes over. Get this, they ran out of dough so it was going to be 2 hours for my pizza LOL Now most people will say no thanks, BUT I wanted this pizza baaaaaaaad and it was all about me and not about my date, so were having pizza! I had no problem with that wait and she was super nice! She called me to tell me my pizza was 15 minutes from being taken out the oven and I can come on down. We raced over there and it smelled so freakin good when we walked in!!! The woman is super nice, it seems like a family affair there. Oh and it has the old places name on the building, but that will change.
We race back home and the pizza smelled so damn good in my car, I wanted a piece asap. We ordered the Chicagos finest with added pepperoni and sausage and a house salad. We open that box and it looks freakin awesome, you can literally smell the ingredients. The salad was a small and it was enough for us two, it wasn’t a bs house salad, it had plenty of croutons, red onions, plump baby tomatoes, lettuce and THEEEEEE freshest mozzarella I ever tasted mmmm. Now to the pizza, this pizza is dense, in a good way. It was super delish, the ingredients again are super fresh. The sausage was super yummy, tasted like they did it themselves in the back, I like how its a layer and not mini meat balls. The cheese ooozzzzeeeed, the spinach was fresh and a good amount of mushrooms. It was too heavy for me to have two slices but my date had THREE!!! I can’t believe he was able to still stay up for a long ass Harry potter movie after that lol He loved it that much. If I could, I would of had 2 slices haha.
Overall I love this place and I can’t wait til my family can try this. I will also try the regular pizza as well. I hope this place gets a huge following so they can have earlier opening hours and later closing hours. ENJOY!