We tried pizza from some of the hottest fast-casual chains — and the winner was clear

Fast-casual pizza is one of the fastest-growing categories of food, a 2016 report from Technomic found. Chains like Blaze Pizza, MOD Pizza, and Pieology create made-to-order personal pies on an assembly line, much like Chipotle, and bake them on an open flame.

In honor of National Pizza Day, we taste-tested pizzas from those three chains — and the winner was clear.

Fast-casual pizza should terrify legacy brands like Domino's, Pizza Hut, and Papa John's.

Three of the five fastest-growing restaurant chains in 2016 were fast-casual pizza concepts, according to Technomic. Their sales accounted for 37% of US fast-casual business last year.

Not all fast-casual pizza is created alike. We stopped into the three fastest-growing chains.

Our test had two categories: the classic cheese pizza and a meat-lover's rendition.

This cheesy beauty came from Pieology, the fastest-growing restaurant in the US in 2015. Cheeses arrive in wheels and blocks and are grated fresh, Pieology says.

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The crust lifts off the plate around the edges, making the slice easy to hold. But it's still thin and flavorless. The right amount of sauce and a whole-milk mozzarella saved this slice.

Next up is Blaze Pizza, which was earlier this year named the fastest-growing restaurant ever after going from two to 200 locations in four years. It's backed by LeBron James.

In 2015, James walked away from a $14 million endorsement deal with McDonald's to become part of Blaze Pizza's marketing campaigns. He's also an early investor in the chain.

The sauce was so overpowered by oregano that I couldn't taste the mozzarella, which hardly pulled apart.

Isn't that all anyone wants in life — to watch cheese cascading over the edges of a slice of pizza?

My salvation appeared to be this cheesy pie from MOD Pizza. Founded by a former Starbucks executive in 2008, the chain has more than doubled in size over the past year.

Gooey mozzarella was cooked to perfection. And look at those air bubbles in the crust.

While the copious amounts of cheese did not disappoint, the crust couldn't hold its weight. The slice reminded me of the melting clocks in a Salvador Dali painting.

Moving onto the meat-lover's pizza round, I felt confident that Pieology and MOD Pizza would duke it out for the title. And because I'm a meat-lover's-pizza fiend, the stakes were high.

Pieology's "butcher's choice" pizza looked great from the start, with glistening pepperoni slices and a strong cheese-to-topping ratio. Again, the crust curled at the edges.

When I bit in, a charcoal taste filled my mouth. I turned over the slice and discovered the bottom was burned black. The toppings were delicious, but it wasn't enough.

I wondered if the "meat eater" from Blaze Pizza could make a comeback in the second half. It was the only pie to feature red onions, which I like, and meatballs instead of sausage.

An overly aromatic, slightly bitter sauce was again Blaze Pizza's downfall. While the red onion added a nice crunch, the pepperoni and meatballs tasted bland. Sorry, LeBron.

MOD Pizza's "mad dog" comes with pepperoni, ground beef, and mild sausage. The toppings appeared to be swimming in pools of melted mozzarella.

The mad dog was unparalleled. Though I could have used a bit more sauce, a perfect storm of flavorful meats, abundant cheese, and a springy crust made this slice easy to devour.

Overall, Pieology's cheese was heavenly, Blaze Pizza had an overpowering sauce, and MOD Pizza excelled in two core criteria: the crust and the bake.