The man behind a popular Belfast pizza pop-up has confirmed he will open a restaurant on the Ormeau Road this spring.
Pi Guy was started by Marty Duggan in his back garden in 2019 and specialises in naturally leavened sourdough pizzas.
The business previously operated as a pop-up within Trademarket on the Dublin Road before the market closed last summer and was named as one of the ‘50 Best Pizza Places in the UK’ by The Times last year.
The new restaurant will be housed in one of the empty restaurant units at the ground level of the Curzon Building beside The Errigle Inn.
“We had looked at a number of sites in the city centre but ultimately we kept being drawn back to the Ormeau Road because this is my home and where our original customer base is from,” Mr Duggan told The Irish News.
“I used to get such a kick out of people who used to come and knock my door for a pizza pick up whenever we were just starting out and then see them a couple of years later coming to Trademarket.
“Most of those original guys from the really early days are local to the Ormeau Road so it felt right to set up there.
“Another reason was because it’s a proper old school high street – people talk a lot about how the high street’s dead but it’s not its just changed and become more localised.
“And I think the Ormeau Road is brilliant because it really embraces local, independent businesses and the people that live there really support that.”
Aiming to add the buzz surrounding the area Mr Duggan said the restaurant will offer a casual and relaxed dining experience.
More: Pi Guy pizza concept pops up at Cathedral Quarter’s Hill Street Hatch
“There’s not going to be a booking system or anything like that.
“It’s going to be based on some of our favourite places to visit in the likes of London, New York and Dublin where there’s quick service, a quick turnaround and just casual restaurant vibes.
“I’m really happy and really proud that we’ve managed, over the last few years, to move from this backyard operation into Trademarket and now be in a position where we can open a restaurant is amazing.
“Because I’m not a trained chef I suppose I always have that thing in the back of my mind that we are still this scrappy operation.
“But the flip side of it is that enough people have come to us and kept coming back for me to realise we’ve done something really good over the last number of years.
“So hopefully we’re able to just expand on that and bring what we do to a bigger audience.”
