Tru Pizza Co.'s Wyandotte location, a dedicated gluten-free pizzeria that opened its doors to Downriver diners just seven months ago, will close for good on August 30, 2026. Owner Anthony Cipolla is stepping away from the Tru franchise entirely, trading the allergen-free concept for a new pizza bar with beer, cocktails and weekly entertainment at the same Biddle Avenue address.
Cipolla, who owns the Wyandotte franchise, expressed sadness about the closure and gratitude toward customers and supporters, according to The Detroit News. The Wyandotte outpost at 3144 Biddle Avenue originally opened in January 2026, meaning it operated for less than eight months before this closure announcement, as MI Gluten Free Gal first reported.
Cipolla's decision to close and step away from the franchise carries a personal weight. He was originally drawn into the dedicated gluten-free restaurant business because his wife has celiac disease, and he set out to build a genuinely safe place for her and others like her to eat pizza, per WDET 101.9 FM. That mission now gives way to a concept aimed at a much broader crowd.
What The Pizza Bar Will Look Like
Cipolla plans to open the new concept, called The Pizza Bar, at the same 3144 Biddle address in fall 2026, the Detroit News reports. Unlike Tru Pizza Co., the new venue will not be an allergen-free facility, though it will still offer options for guests with dietary restrictions. The lineup will include pizza, beer and cocktails alongside weekly trivia, music bingo, pizza-and-beer nights, football watch parties, and patio concerts and events.
The shift makes sense given the building's setting. The storefront sits within Downtown Wyandotte's Social District, established by the city council in 2020 to let patrons carry and consume alcoholic beverages outdoors across the commercial corridor, according to the Sunday Times Newspapers. A pizza bar built around a patio, live music and sports watch parties is a natural fit for that kind of designated outdoor-drinking corridor.
A Building With Deep Pizza Roots
The address has a long history tied to pizza in Downriver. Before Tru Pizza Co. moved in, 3144 Biddle Avenue housed Frank's Pizzeria, a neighborhood institution established in 1952 that served the community for nearly 70 years before changing hands and closing in early 2026, according to ClickOnDetroit. In that light, the building's next chapter as a pizza-and-beer bar continues a thread that stretches back more than seven decades, even as the gluten-free chapter in between proved short-lived.
Tru Pizza Co. itself has a winding corporate history. The brand launched in Troy in 2014 as Renee's Gourmet Pizzeria before Achille “Ace” DiNello acquired it in May 2019, rebranded it, and expanded it through franchising, per MI Gluten Free Gal's reporting. The company still operates locations in Troy and Plymouth, and it built its identity around strict, dedicated gluten-free and peanut-free standards, including a total ban on wheat flour on-site to eliminate cross-contamination risk for celiac guests, according to the Metro Detroiter.
Serving A Growing, Underserved Market
Maintaining that kind of dedicated facility is no small operational lift, and it comes as national demand for gluten-free options keeps climbing. The U.S. market for gluten-free food products reached $3.17 billion in 2024 and is projected to hit $4.7 billion by 2029, according to MarketsandMarkets. The global gluten-free bakery sector alone is projected to reach $8.48 billion in 2026, growing nearly 9% annually through 2031 as diagnostic rates for celiac disease continue to rise, per Mordor Intelligence. Restaurants that do label items gluten-free must keep gluten content at 20 parts per million or below under federal regulations and international Codex Alimentarius standards, according to Market.us — a strict threshold that leaves little room for error in a shared kitchen.
Cipolla's presence in the local food scene extends beyond the Wyandotte storefront. He also operates the Tru Pizza Co. Food Truck, which rolled through Downtown Detroit's Cadillac Square food truck rally in April, an event Hoodline previously covered as part of its opening lineup of roughly 80 trucks.
Last Chance For Gluten-Free Slices
Until then, Tru Pizza Co. Wyandotte remains open for dine-in, carryout, and delivery through August 30. Current hours run 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays. Customers can reach the shop at 734-250-9816 or through its website, trupizzacowyandotte.com, before the doors close for good and The Pizza Bar takes shape this fall.
