Detroit city is famously known for its culture and production, from Motown’s music to car manufacturing. Over the years, this Michigan metropolis has offered more than just these, and that is traditional food. This unique square style of pizza has taken over the nation recently and has encouraged consumption in huge portions.
It is a rectangular shape, airy dough with buttery flavour, and a light and savoury crust pizza with a chewy crust made of bread flour in the corner bites, making it most delectable and worth trying. All Detroit-style restaurants try to make it similar to their origins, which is the original Buddy’s Pizza, but despite this, Detroiters do have a loyalty to traditional pizza recipes.
So, here is everything you need to know about this chewy, bubbly crust paired with crunchy, cheesy edges.
1. What is Detroit Style Pizza?
Detroit-style pizza is a rectangular pan pizza with a crispy, thick, and fluffy crust. It is traditionally topped with Wisconsin brick cheese or low-moisture mozzarella, which melts against the sides of the heavy-weight rectangular Pan.
The original Buddy’s Pizza was made using auto-drip pans as baking trays for square pizzas.
During the 1900s, this Detroit-based authentic pizza was made before spreading out to different towns in America in the 2010s.
In 1946, Buddy’s Pizza introduced the Detroit style of pizza, which had dough recipes and varied pans. In summary, he loaded ingredients in a Sicilian-style dough onto salvaged steel pans, topped them with Wisconsin brick cheese instead of the base, and slathered on the sauce until they were finished.
2. The Detroit Style Pizza Recipe
2.1. The Red Top of Detroit-Style Pizza
Occasionally, a guidebook will refer to Detroit Square as a “Detroit Red Top.”
Although it might seem strange, this makes the crust and dough crisp. Consequently, the pepperoni is less crispy.
2.1.1. Pan Used
These pans have seen some restaurants switch to alternative cookware as the original producers eventually quit. It is also available in two sizes: 8–10 inches, which can hold four slices, and 10–14 inches, which can hold up to eight.
Furthermore, the Pan’s edges are inclined outward, creating a much larger area at its top than at its bottom. Though Buddies increased the recipe to fit a large 12-inch by 16-inch Pan once, Pikula recalls “it was challenging rolling out the dough” until it was suitable for this pizza.
Nevertheless, Detroit-style pizzas are square despite their clear rectangular form.
2.1.2. The Sicilian style
Another close cousin to Detroit-style pizza may be Sicilian style, a spongy focaccia baked in a rectangular pan with toppings pressed directly into the dough and topped with olive oil and tomato sauce.
But without this vital dish, there won’t be such a thing as Detroit Square.
Buddy’s restaurant in Detroit, popularly regarded as the ground zero of Detroit-style pizza, has found out that a blue industrial steel pan, one such as was used by car workers at numerous industries in Detroit during the heyday of the city’s manufacturing prowess, has the perfect recipe for a pizza vessel.
2.2. The Wisconsin Brick Cheese of Detroit-Style Pizza
Buddy’s and other places where Detroit-style pies are typically cooked use a lot of Wisconsin brick cheese. This is a slightly flavoured semisoft type with a high fat content similar to cheddar. Many pizza recipes use low-moisture mozzarella.
The buttery flavour from the cheese spreads all over the edges of the dough, which has no oil on it. Thus, it is suitable for establishments that do not grease their pans. As they cook, the cheese on top trickles towards its extremities and browns to make a crispy golden crust while remaining soft inside.
3. Detroit Style Pizzas: An Overview
Metro Detroit abounds with many parlours selling square pies, but three main ones always take priority on people’s dining lists.
First known as Buddy’s, Buddy’s Pizza is the original Detroit-style slice maker, opening in 1936. Suburban cafes like Loui’s Pizza, Hazel Park, and Cloverleaf Pizza in Eastpointe were established.
The thick Detroit slices are best enjoyed with utensils at roughly 230 degrees Fahrenheit, though New Yorkers may embarrass anyone who dares to eat one with a fork and knife. Co-owner Marie Easterby of Cloverleaf in Eastpointe claims to have witnessed changes in the pizza-eating habits of patrons at her family’s eatery.
3.1. Ingredients Required
Condiments and ingredients are rearranged, making it tasty and different from any other kind of pizza. The fluffy, slightly Sicilian-influenced dough and crust earned fame for their dripping throughout, high-fat content, and brick-cheese-covered base.
Secondly, due to its Pan’s thickness all over the inside surface, a pan pizza has a chewy crust that remains crispy outside. At the same time, toppings such as the original recipe sauce should be allowed to shine most because there is no intermingling of the ingredients with each other.
Navigating Detroit-Style Pizza’s Temptation
Catherine Rall, the Registered Dietitian at Happy V, provides insights into the nutritional aspects of Detroit-style pizza and whether health considerations contribute to or detract from its popularity:
“Detroit-style pizza has many crave-able elements: a thick, greasy crust with crispy corners, plenty of cheese, and extra pepperoni. However, people are definitely not drawn to it for health reasons.
Detroit-style pizza has no veggies, the one saving grace of many forms of pizza, and it’s also heavy on processed meats, which are especially likely to promote heart disease, stroke, and other long-term health issues.
Throw in a large number of carbohydrates and fat and the complete lack of fibre, and you have a delicious style of pizza that should only be enjoyed in moderation as part of a balanced, healthy diet.”
4. Three Main Restaurants for Detroit-Style Pizza
4.1. Buddy’s Pizza
It was founded in 1946, but the bar opened in 1936. It depended on its location and whether gas or electric ovens were used. Its address is 17125 Conant Street, Detroit, MI 48212. The restaurant also provides various gluten-free choices for health-conscious customers.
Buddy’s is bound to be mentioned as the starting point for all Radler’s Detroit-style pizzas near Hamtramck’s boundary along Conant Street at the intersection with McNichols Road. Known as the creator of Detroit-style pizza according to almost every tale about it, nobody knows by whom or how exactly that was invented.
4.1.1. Buddy’s History
Buddy’s began operating in the 1930s, managed by Gus Guerra and his wife’s uncle. While it was one of several thousand such houses in the area during Prohibition, Guerra turned Buddy’s into an authentic restaurant in 1946.
Wesley Pikula, the chief brand officer of Buddy’s Pizza and a former busboy who began working there in the 1980s, claimed that he had never heard the word “Detroit-style” until a trade journal used it in the 1980s, and even then, it was only used in national trade pieces.
Several local media outlets still called the look “Sicilian-style” as late as 2007. Since “sometimes people have negative thoughts about Detroit,” some pizza manufacturers in other places debated whether to use that name for their pizza.
According to legend, Guerra converted blue steel containers to transport vehicle components into baking pans by sheer ingenuity or sheer common sense. He filled the rectangle pan with his mother-in-law’s light Sicilian-style dough and covered the entire top with Wisconsin brick cheese.
Although it was common in the Detroit region, Detroit-style pizza remained uncommon outside the city until the 2010s. Using the moniker “Detroit-style” to set themselves apart, two brothers from Detroit started a Detroit-style pizza shop in Austin, Texas, in 2011.
A restaurateur in New York made a pizza in 2012 that he referred to as “Detroit-style” using focaccia bread, mozzarella, and ricotta—even though he had never been to Detroit.
4.1.2. Focaccia Crust
Since the baking pans at the time were inappropriate for the dish, the restaurant baked the “focaccia-like crust” in blue steel pans obtained from nearby automotive suppliers. In the 1930s and 1940s, Dover Parkersburg manufactured steel pans used as drip trays or to store minor parts or waste metal in auto manufacturing. Some 50–75-year-old pans are still in use.
The local mythology began when Guerra added two red “racing stripes” of marinara sauce after it was baked. This is the last element that distinguishes a quality Detroit-style pizza.”
On another note, veteran employee Connie Piccinato says she showed Guerra how to make it. The product became a commercial success, no matter who invented it. That same year, Gus sold the business to Jimmy Bonacorsi and Jimmy Valenti so he could open East Detroit himself.
Billy Jacobs (co-founder) and Shirlee Jacobs, the current president, purchased the firm in 1997.
Today, under Robert Jacobs’ direction, the brand has expanded to include ten more locations throughout metropolitan Detroit.
4.2. Loui’s Pizza
The oven was made of brick when it was found. Their signature pizzas were for meat lovers as well as Hawaiians. The address is 23141 Dequindre Rd., Hazel Park, MI 48030. Also, remember that Chianti is a pound of cheese on every pizza!
This dark horse among Detroit-style pizza triumvirates is Loui’s Pizza. It was founded by Louis Tourtois, a Frenchman who started his career as a teenage pizza delivery boy for his wife’s uncle, Jimmy Valenti and his friend, Jimmy Bonacorsi, at age seventeen.
Following his desire to control Buddy’s eventually, he helped it win one of its initial blue pizza medals. Billy and Shirlee Jacobs dashed the cook’s dreams when they proposed buying their stakes from the Jimmys.
He left the restaurant and asked if he could rent Shield’s kitchen, a nearby tavern, for a Detroit-style pizza joint. The association brought profit to Shield’s, which finally attracted buyers.
Many nights, Loui’s Pizza is graced with families who cuddle among red booth seats and long tables covered by glass. Almost every wall has clusters of white Christmas lights and Chianti bottles in woven baskets. At this restaurant, people have a tradition of signing a Chianti bottle and hanging it on the wall; it is almost as famous as the pizza itself.
4.2.1. Loui’s History
Tourtois once again did not have a kitchen; hence, in 1977, Loui’s Pizza was opened in Hazel Park, a working-class suburb of Detroit.
This third-generation family restaurant refuses to grow, franchise, or sell to maintain its uncompromised independence. “Louis is still Louis—no change at all! The same staff are here.” “He does not make many changes,” says Laurie Stepentic, the manager.
4.3. Cloverleaf
It started over half a century ago, in 1953. Carryout outlets used conveyor ovens, and the Eastpointe has a deck oven and a known signature pizza with cheese and pepperoni. The location is 24443 Gratiot Ave., Eastpointe, MI 48021. In addition, it also offers gluten-free options.
Cloverleaf, located in Eastpointe (formerly East Detroit), is closely associated with the old Buddy’s site on Conant. The founder, Gus Guerra, sold the company to Jimmys in Detroit in 1953 after he decided to separate from his partner at Buddy’s while buying Cloverleaf, a small white farmhouse-style pub in Eastpointe.
Guerra added his recipe for the Detroit-style pizza crust to the menu to attract Irish customers from the neighbourhood and preserve the name Cloverleaf. The square shape of these pies became highly popular, just as it was for the first Buddy’s pizzas.
The original restaurant burned down in 1993, but Guerra’s family rebuilt it and added some unique features, like a children’s dining section, according to Marie Easterby, Guerra’s daughter.
5. Unrivaled Delight: Exploring the Charms of Detroit-Style Pizza
Jonathan Josias from Pearl Lemon Catering offers personal insights into Detroit-style pizza’s taste, texture, and favourite aspects:
“Detroit-style pizza stands out thanks to its taste and texture. The crust is baked in a well-oiled, deep rectangular pan, making it crispy and golden outside and still light and airy inside.
Unlike the Pistons, this unique crust is created by proofing the dough, resulting in an unrivalled balance.
Detroit-style pizza offers a unique blend of flavours. I already spoke about the crust, which provides the ideal base for the tomato sauce generously spread across the top.
This sauce-to-crust ratio ensures every bite is a great one. Traditionally, in Wisconsin brick cheese, the cheese is spread to the edges, creating a crispy, cheesy perimeter that is a delightful surprise with every bite.
Moreover, when toppings are added, they’re carefully layered to ensure each ingredient shines through. Whether you choose pepperoni, sausage, or fresh vegetables, the crust and cheese complement the toppings.
What makes Detroit-style pizza a favourite among pizza enthusiasts is its ability to deliver a unique experience. The contrast of textures creates a delectable mouthfeel that is incredibly satisfying.
The balance of flavours and the pizza’s overall visual appeal, in its rectangular form, all contribute to its charm.
Detroit-style pizza is a culinary masterpiece with exceptional taste, texture, and visual appeal. Whether you are a pizza connoisseur or simply a lover of good food, I highly recommend experiencing its unique delights.”
6. Conclusion
Suddenly, when Randazzo began teaching pizzaiolos across America how to make it up, Detroit-style pizzerias started popping up everywhere—some natural, others not natural.
As stated earlier, Little Caesars started offering Detroit-style pizza in 2013, while Pizza Hut did the same. Sulkiwskyj argues, “He was a charming gentleman; I knew him, and he helped put Detroit-style pizza on the map.”
As noted by Sulkiwskyj, though, huge names like Randazzo’s, Tourtois, or Guerra’s are no longer here to tell the tale of this fantastic food concept called Detroit-style pizza and its development.
However, large players in the industry have already taken it up with their chains, marketing it all over the country; according to Sulkiwskyj, “If you want the real thing, you have to go to Detroit or at least Michigan.”
So, visiting these restaurants must be on your bucket list for a delectable Detroit experience.
Guest Author: Saket Kumar
Last Updated on March 12, 2024 by Khushahal Malakar
