An Iconic Chicago Pizza Chain Is Closing And The Reason Is Heartbreaking

When times are tough, you can usually count on pizza to make things a little better. Unfortunately, even your favorite spot for a slice can falls on hard times, as is the case with Chicago's My Pi pizza chain, which is closing its doors for good in June 2025. My Pi will be saying goodbye to its fans after serving the Windy City since 1971.

The pizza chain informed their loyal customers of the impending closure on May 1, via the brand's Instagram, with a message that detailed their 54 year history — including the expansion to nine other states outside Illinois during the brand's prime. In fact, My Pi once boasted 25 other deep-dish serving franchises. Now, My Pi will continue to take nationwide shipping orders up until June 22, and will shut down entirely by June 29, 2025. While it's always disappointing to watch a local business shudder, My Pi's decision to do so is a familiar one across the current food service economy.

Rich Aronson, son of 89-year-old My Pi founder Larry Aronson, as well as the owner of the last standing Bucktown neighborhood brick-and-mortar location, told the Chicago Tribune that the lack of an onsite dining room ultimately hurt their business. My Pi is known for deep dish pizzas that can be ordered for takeout and delivery, but customers looking for a sit down restaurant to share a pie would have to find an eatery other than Aronson's family's chain to do so.

Unlike most restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, My Pi reported that their business shot up by 400% thanks to their shipping arm. Because of this, Aronson and his team made the call to convert the operations of their existing indoor dining areas to storage space and freezer holding. However, as the pandemic subsided, so, too, did the pizza delivery business — leaving My Pi feeling the financial pain.

Aronson noted that if My Pi had a dining room, the decision to stay open would be easier, but like a lot of beloved restaurant chains facing hard economic realities, he chose to stop running the restaurant instead. After working in restaurants for 44 years, and owning the Buckstown My Pi for 25 of those years, Aronson noted that he's "...a little tired."

My Pi is not alone in the number of restaurant chains struggling due to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, its not alone in struggling to make ends meet as prices surge for essential ingredients and products. Bertucci's, the popular east coast pizza chain closed in April 2025 around the same time that Domino's pizza announced a number of location closures across the world.

As many business analysts have noted over the years, for any restaurant –- whether a fast-food chain known around the world or a local mom and pop shop –- to thrive, it needs to adapt with the times. This could mean anything from upgrading operations in order to cut costs while increasing production times to analyzing customer trends and preferences in order to revamp menus and adhere to customer dietary needs, preferences, and tastes.

The good news is that no matter what, pizza chains will more than likely continue to exist no matter what. For the time being you can still grab a deep dish pizza from My Pi, or keep following the brand's social media for details on their appearance at Chicago's Pizza City fest later in the summer.