"Pi Pizza, a Heights pizzeria that earned raves from Houston diners before being embroiled in years-long business drama, has officially closed its doors. The restaurant announced its surprise departure in a statement released last Friday afternoon, which noted that its current owners look to focus on their other restaurants, including Tex-Mex spot Candente and barbecue favorite Pit Room. “We loved the pizza from Pi, we just didn’t have the time and bandwidth to give Pi the focus it needed given the demands of our other concepts,” reads the statement issued by Sambrooks Management Company. “We are excited that several Pi employees are moving to our other concepts and we wish the best to those talented folks that are going off to other opportunities.” Prior to Sambrooks’s takeover of the restaurant in August 2018, Pi Pizza was owned by restaurant group Cherry Pie Hospitality, which flamed out spectacularly that year, leaving behind a trail of lawsuits and allegations that its partners “stiffed” investors out of their money. The drama kicked off when Cherry Pie Hospitality sold off four of its restaurants, including Pi Pizza, in what those investors called a “fire sale.” Lawsuits filed by former investors allege that they never saw any of the proceeds from the sale. When it first opened with chef Anthony Calleo at the helm, though, Pi Pizza was a beloved spot with endlessly creative pies and boozy drinks. Back in 2019, Eater reported that Sambrooks had plans to revamp the restaurant into a new spot called DoBros, but those plans never materialized." - Amy McCarthy
