Two inches of olive oil proofed focaccia crumb baked in seasoned steel pans builds a crispy fried bottom.
Original Gino's Sicilian Thick Deck Pan Pizza is crafted for Toledo pizza lovers who want honest deep dish with an airy, honeycombed interior rather than a dense lump of raw dough. Sold from our hearth counter at 3981 Monroe St in Toledo, Ohio, this rectangular specialty is proofed directly in heavy blue steel baking pans brushed generously with extra virgin olive oil.
Chain pizzerias fake pan pizza by running chemical dough conditioners through rapid proofer tunnels and coating the pans in hydrogenated food spray. Gino's takes four hours to proof each Sicilian pan in our kitchen. When the steel pan enters our 550-degree deck ovens, the olive oil fries the bottom crust to a golden shatter while shredded whole-milk mozzarella packed tight against the steel edges caramelizes into a dark, crunchy cheese perimeter.
Proofing and firing sixteen Sicilian steel deck pans for a Friday evening Monroe Street carryout rush
At 3:30 PM on a brisk autumn Friday, our kitchen ticket board logged sixteen advance reservations for whole Sicilian deep dish pans, scheduled for staggered customer pickups between 5:30 and 7:00 PM. A proper Sicilian pan cannot be stretched and baked on a whim; the high-hydration dough requires a secondary pan rise in oiled steel so gluten strands expand into a web of airy pockets before meeting deck heat.
Our deck bakers brushed sixteen black steel pans with extra virgin olive oil, placed thirty ounces of high-protein fermented dough into each, and gently pressed the dough outwards with floured fingertips over forty minutes. Once the dough filled every corner and reached an inch and a half of pillowy rise, we pushed whole-milk mozzarella shreds tight against the steel perimeters. On top, we ladled thick streaks of our crushed California tomato sauce and scattered cup pepperoni and fennel sausage.
Pans were slid directly onto the stone deck floor at 540 degrees. Over twenty-four minutes, the intense heat conducted through the steel pan, frying the bottom crust in olive oil until golden brown while the perimeter cheese melted into crispy dark lacing. Each pan was demolded onto a maple cutting bench, sliced into nine substantial squares with a heavy rocker cutter, and transferred into reinforced corrugated boxes. Every customer picked up their steaming pan within five minutes of their promised ticket window.
"The bake takes ten to thirty minutes from ticket drop to boxed pie at 3981 Monroe Street."Gino’s Pizza Kitchen Crew — Continuous Deck Ovens Since 1953
Seventy-three years of Toledo deck baking craft
Original Gino's Pizza has baked in Toledo, Ohio since 1953 from 3981 Monroe St. The kitchen is operated by the Gino's Pizza crew, using heavy-duty stone deck pizza ovens that require genuine culinary skill and constant timing attention. We refuse conveyor belts, compressed dough discs, or synthetic pan sprays.
Customers compare our pizzeria against alternatives on five core metrics: price, size, toppings, customer rating, and delivery reliability. Our prices are fixed between 7.44 and 21.69 USD per pizza. We do not invent arbitrary service charges or deliver cold par-baked crusts.
Step-by-step baking of your Sicilian deck pan
Olive Oil Steel Pan Coating
Heavy seasoned steel rectangular pans are coated with pure extra virgin olive oil to facilitate frying rather than sticking.
Focaccia Pan Proofing
Cold-ferment dough is pressed into corners and rested in warm kitchen air until it rises nearly two inches into an airy sponge.
Perimeter Cheese Packing
Whole-milk mozzarella is packed directly against the hot steel pan perimeter, topped with tomato sauce and chosen meats.
Stone Hearth Pan Conduction
The steel pan sits on stone slabs at 540°F for 20 to 30 minutes, frying the base while heat caramelizes the cheese crown.
Customer objections, common questions, and who this is not for
Is this pizza heavy and doughy in the middle?
No. Our high-hydration dough ferments for eighteen hours and proofs in the pan before baking. This produces an open crumb structure filled with airy bubbles, resembling Italian focaccia rather than a heavy loaf of bread.
Why does Sicilian pan pizza take longer to prepare?
A thick steel pan pizza takes twenty to thirty minutes on the stone deck to bake completely through to the center while crisping the underside. If you need a fast ten-minute order, choose our thin crust tavern pizza instead.
Who this pizza is not for:
If you want a wafer-thin, cracker-style pizza or are seeking a low-carbohydrate lunch, this is not the right choice. Sicilian pan pizza is substantial, thick, and satisfying, designed for guests who love airy bread texture and caramelized cheese crusts.
Explore sibling pizza styles in our Toledo catalogue
Compare our Sicilian pan pizza with other menu options:
- Original Gino's Deluxe Pizza — Five-topping signature on hand-tossed deck crust (9.95–21.69 USD).
- Four-Meat Heavy Deck Pizza — Carnivore build with pepperoni, sausage, ham, and bacon (10.25–21.69 USD).
- Garden Fresh Veggie Pizza — Fresh mushrooms, green peppers, sweet onions, and tomatoes (8.95–19.45 USD).
- Toledo Tavern Thin Crust Pizza — Ultra-thin rolled dough cut into bite-sized crispy squares (7.44–17.80 USD).
- Hand-Folded Calzones & Pizza Rolls — Scratch turnovers stuffed with mozzarella and ricotta (8.50–16.50 USD).
Request Carryout or Delivery Quote
Submit your Sicilian pan order inquiry. Our Monroe Street counter team calculates exact bake timing and quote based on pan size, toppings, and delivery radius (7.44–21.69 USD per pie).