Popular pizza pop-up to open permanent shop in Oakland County

HAZEL PARK, Mich. – A popular pizza pop-up is set to open a permanent location in Oakland County this spring.

After hosting a pop-up at Dragonfly in Detroit in late 2025, Amelia Street Pizza Co. is opening a location at 951 E. 9 Mile Road in Hazel Park, according to a release from Booth One Creative.

Founder Matt Arb spent seven years as a refinancing banker before a personal life shift led him down a completely different path, where he started focusing his time on perfecting sourdough pizza dough.

Arb began documenting his progress on Instagram, and his posts quickly caught the attention of the community.

He began offering limited pizza via “drops” on Instagram, selling pies made from his home kitchen. But Arb was forced to stop after someone threatened to report his unlicensed kitchen to the police, according to the release.

Around that same time, James Rigato, the chef and owner of the acclaimed Hazel Park restaurant Mabel Gray, reached out after discovering Amelia Street Pizza Co. on social media. Now, Rigato is partnering with Arb as an investor and mentor.

To prepare for the transition from home baker, Arb completed a residency at Dragonfly in Detroit in late 2025, gaining firsthand experience with the demands of commercial service.

“I’ve wanted to open a pizza spot for a long time,” Rigato said. “But this is not a Mabel Gray project. This is Matt’s business and Matt’s pizza. My mentorship is on the business and behind-the-scenes side. It’s about continuing to bring great food concepts to the city where I live and work, and helping a talented, independent guy who makes really great pizza build something from the ground up.”

The 1,000-square-foot shop in Hazel Park is designed primarily for carryout customers, with space for 10-15 people to stand or sit while they eat their pizza.

The menu is intentionally small, modeled after beloved East Coast pizza shops like Chrissy’s in Brooklyn, New York, or Garlic Breath in Andover, Massachusetts.

Guests will be able to get cheese pizza, pepperoni pizza, on rotating special pizza, cheese bread, homemade brown butter chocolate chip cookies and soft drinks at Amelia Street Pizza Co.

The dough is crafted through a 72-hour cold fermentation process using a sourdough biga that blends commercial and wild yeast. Each pie is finished with a distinctive half-moon shave of Pecorino cheese along the crust, a signature detail that enhances both flavor and visual appeal.

The pizza spot will focus on whole pies, rather than slices, according to the release, and plans to host guest chefs and pop-ups.

“It’s the coolest thing to have someone like James taking an interest in this little thing that started in my kitchen,” Arb said. “He hasn’t tried to change it or tell me what to do. Having him in my corner is just going to make it even more special. Our goal is to have the best pizza you’ve ever had, but for it to still feel like a neighborhood spot.”

The shop is expected to open at 951 E. 9 Mile Road in Hazel Park in late spring 2026. You can keep up with Amelia Street Pizza Co. on Instagram to get the latest updates.