Pizza Gutt getting its own shop in Kensington this spring

Dan “Pizza Gutt” Gutter gained a loyal following by making thick, Detroit-style pizzas in a city known for thin-crust pies. Now he’s taking his distinctive square pizzas to Kensington, where he plans to open his own shop next month.

The pizzeria, called Circles + Squares for the pies he’ll craft in both shapes, will be the first permanent home for the semi-nomadic business known to many as Pizza Gutt for the name of his Instagram page.

“Pizza is either a circle, a square or a triangle,” Gutter said. “But I have a feeling people are going to call it ‘Pizza Gutt’ no matter what.”

Until last month, Gutter sold his pies a few days a week out of the kitchen of W/N W/N Coffee Bar, a cooperatively owned cafe and bar on the 900 block of Spring Garden Street.

At his new pizzeria at Tulip and Firth Streets in Kensington, the former Lil Lina’s Slices & Scoops, Gutter will run the show. Since the shop is already set up as a pizza parlor, Gutter said getting the space ready will take little work. His goal is to open May 1.

“It’s like every pizza shop you saw growing up,” Gutter said.

The shop is owned by the team behind Northern Liberties’ Bourbon & Branch, who partnered with Gutter for the project. The space seats 10 to 15 people, and Gutter hopes to add a few outdoor seats in the future.

Gutter joined the city’s pizza scene by selling his pizza at pop-ups that he promoted via his Instagram, @pizza_gutt. After he landed at W/N W/N in August 2017, he added a link to his profile that allowed people to reserve a portion of the 50 pies he made each night. The rest were sold to walk-in customers.

The system became more competitive as word of mouth spread. By last month, after Gutter had announced that his stint at W/N W/N was coming to an end, reservations were booking up immediately.

At Circles + Squares, Gutter plans to sell 125 pizzas a day. He will hire an assistant and hasn’t decided whether he’ll keep his reservation system, but said the shop will have a phone for orders. He will also sell some slices from the round pies. And he said the square pizzas should taste the same as before.

“I want the pizza to be as accessible as possible,” he said. “I want it to be as mom-and-pop and as normal a pizza shop as it can be."