Buddy's pizza sets opening date for downtown Detroit location

Susan Selasky | Detroit Free Press

It's official. The Buddy's Pizza in downtown Detroit will open soon.

On Wednesday, Buddy’s Pizza announced the long-awaited location on Broadway will begin serving the chain's trademark square, Detroit-style pizzas on December 11. The company released no other details.

Last February, the iconic Detroit-based chain announced a Buddy's Pizza location would fill the space at 1565 Broadway in Grand Circus Park formerly occupied by Angelina Italian Bistro.

“We are excited to announce the grand opening date of Dec. 11 for our downtown Detroit location. This is our first restaurant downtown — in the heart of the city where the Buddy’s story began,” said Wes Pikula, chief brand officer for Buddy’s Pizza. “We are looking forward to continuing to create happy memories with Detroit residents and visitors for generations to come.”

The downtown location is a prime spot because of its proximity to Ford Field, Comerica Park, the Detroit Opera House and other downtown venues.

More: Second Buddy's Pizza outside of metro Detroit area to open near Kalamazoo

This is the second Detroit location and will be the 16th overall. The local chain has been on a blitz, opening new Buddy’s Pizzeria locations this year in Plymouth, Grand Rapids and Woodhaven. In August, a Kalamazoo locations was announced.

Buddy's, known as the creator of Detroit-Style pizza, got its start in 1946 on Conant Street and 6 Mile on Detroit's east side.

The pizza is a square, thick, but airy crust pizza with caramelized crispy edges. A hallmark of the pizza is the square pans it's made in. The pans, known as blue steel pans, originally stemmed from the automotive industry.

Detroit-style pizza has recently seen a surge in popularity. Pizzerias offering Detroit-style pizza are now in other U.S. cities including Denver, Colorado, New York City and Austin, Texas.

More: 6 places to get Detroit-style pizza in metro Detroit

Contact Susan Selasky at 313-222-6872 or sselasky@freepress.com. Follow @SusanMariecooks on Twitter.