Motor City Squares has partnered with The Foodie Labs in the St. Petersburg Warehouse and Arts District to bring a taste of Detroit to you. Detroit has a rich culture in the automotive and pizza industries. The story of Detroit-style Pizza starts off in 1946 with Buddy's Pizza owner Gus Guerra. Gus's wife, Anna, suggested using her Sicilian grandmother's dough recipe for a light and airy focaccia-style bread. The defining innovation was the pan: Guerra used blue steel automotive parts trays sourced from local auto factories — the same rectangular pans used to hold nuts, bolts, and small components on the assembly line. Detroit's auto industry literally shaped the pizza.

The steel pans conducted heat differently from a normal baking pan. The cheese — Wisconsin brick, pushed all the way to the edges — hit the sides of that pan and caramelized into a crispy, almost fried crust we call 'Frico'. The bottom of the pizza got golden and crunchy while the inside stayed pillowy and light, more like good focaccia than anything else people were calling pizza at the time. The sauce went on last, in stripes over the top of the cheese. It was its own thing entirely.

For decades, it stayed that way — a Detroit thing. Buddy's grew. A handful of other local spots, like Loui's and Cloverleaf, developed their own loyal followings. But the style didn't really travel. If you wanted a Detroit pizza, you went to Detroit. That was part of the identity.

The wider world started paying attention sometime in the 2000s and 2010s, when food writers began digging into regional American pizza traditions that had been hiding in plain sight. A place called Via 313 opened in Austin in 2011 and introduced the format to a whole new audience. The buzz slowly built.

In 2012, World Champion Pizza Maker Shawn Randazzo founded Detroit Style Pizza Co. in Saint Clair Shores, Michigan. Shawn's mission was to spread the taste of Detroit-style pizza. He developed the Authentic Detroit-Style Pizza Maker Program to help other pizzerias run successful businesses by serving authentic Detroit-style pizza.

Motor City Squares was born from Shawn's program, with a passion for bringing authentic Detroit-style pizza to St. Petersburg. Our focaccia-style dough is made fresh daily and proofed to perfection, giving our squares that airy interior with a crispy, golden exterior. We top our pizzas with premium ingredients and finish with racing stripes of our house-made tomato sauce.

Whether you're a lifelong Detroiter or trying your first square, we're here to share a slice of Motor City tradition with you.

What up, dough?