Square Pie Guys closes first location in Palo Alto
Square Pie Guys has closed its Palo Alto restaurant after one year, marking the Detroit-style pizza chain's first-ever shutdown due to weak sales and location challenges.
Square Pie Guys closed its Palo Alto location on October 30 after just one year in business. This shutdown is the first in the Detroit-style pizza mini-chain's history.
The restaurant opened in September 2025 inside a former Local Kitchens space at 369 California Ave. It served its last pizza on October 30, 2026. The chain, known for its thick, crisp-edged crusts and caramelized cheese, now operates four remaining locations.
Reasons behind the closure
Weak dinner and weekend sales, combined with landlord decisions and limited accessibility, led to the shutdown. Founder Marc Schechter said dinner and weekends were consistently slow, with some weekend days performing worse than ordinary weekdays. The California Avenue location was on a section closed to through vehicle traffic, which contributed to limited drive-by visibility.
Schechter stated the restaurant occupied a middle ground between quick grab-and-go and full-service sit-down concepts, making conversion to full-service too ambitious. Muna Azzghayer said they were blindsided by the news that the landlord chose not to renew their lease. Schechter said he would be open to returning to Palo Alto someday in the future.
Chain's expansion and current status
Square Pie Guys operates six locations across the Bay Area, with the SoMa site remaining its top performer. The chain launched as a pop-up in 2018 and opened its first brick-and-mortar at 1077 Mission St. in SoMa one year later. It has since expanded to multiple locations.
| Location | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco (SoMa) | Open | First brick-and-mortar (2019), highest-grossing |
| San Francisco (Financial District) | Open | |
| San Francisco (Union Square) | Open | |
| Oakland | Open | Debuted in 2021 |
| Campbell | Open | |
| Walnut Creek | Open | Opened December 2026 |
| Palo Alto | Closed | Closed October 30, 2026 |
Four locations remain open: San Francisco, Oakland, Campbell, and Walnut Creek. The newest location opened in January 2025 at the Waymark apartment complex near BART.
Owner's perspective
Owner Marc Schechter announced the closure on Instagram. He apologized to customers, saying the company 'gave it our all' and let people down. Marc Schechter said the closure 'wasn’t an easy decision' but that it was the right one for the business.
Schechter stated that about 75% of Square Pie Guys' sales are off-premise. He and co-author Gabi Moskowitz released Square Pie Guy: Detroit-Style Pizza at Home, a cookbook with 60 recipes including gluten-free and vegan options. Co-founder Danny Stoller departed in 2022, leaving Marc Schechter as sole owner.
Schechter still plans to expand his brand. He hinted at a new location outside the South Bay and a future Peninsula return, though no site or timeline was announced. The next Square Pie Guys location is slated to open in Marin County in 2027. Schechter remains open to returning to Palo Alto someday in the future.
