Cloverleaf Bar and Restaurant

It all began in 1946. The birth of ‘Detroit Style’ pizza: Gus Guerra, his traditional thick-crust family recipe, fresh cheese, premium meats. Perfection!

In 1953, Gus decided it was time to expand his legacy. He purchased the Cloverleaf Bar and Restaurant in East Detroit (now Eastpointe). The restaurant was soon packed with patrons wanting to get a slice of Detroit’s original deep dish pizza!

cloverleaf bar and restaurant

As the years passed Gus and Anna’s children – the late Frank Guerra, Jack Guerra and Marie Guerra Easterby – took over running the family restaurant and keeping their parents’ legacy alive by serving their famous pizza from the authentic recipes while adding an expanded menu of Italian and American favorites.

In 1993, Cloverleaf Bar and Restaurant experienced a catastrophic fire that closed the restaurant for almost a year. But the Guerra family held strong and rebuilt, preserving as much of the original feel of the restaurant as possible. The bar was your home away from home. It was where you brought your family and it still is.

gus guerra salute The walls are adorned with photos and memorabilia from the Guerra family and Cloverleaf history, the tables covered in checkered table cloths, and a large roaring fireplace create a comfortable, cozy atmosphere. Every inch of the bar and restaurant makes you feel at home. From the large oak bar decorated with green Christmas lights, to the café curtains, and to the friendly staff.

The restaurant offers four different dining areas with a full-service bar, which includes high-top tables for a casual atmosphere perfect for a night out with friends, watching the big game on the big screen TVs situated behind the bar, or just lunch and drink.

For those who want a traditional sit-down meal, they offer two dining areas and an enclosed temperature-controlled patio that is open all year for those who want to dine with an outdoor view and is also perfect for private parties.

So come on in, grab a drink and sit down to enjoy one of the famous Detroit original style pizzas, fresh-made salads, delicious whipped cheesecake or many other tasty menu items!

Gus Guerra: A True Detroit Original

Have you ever noticed that across the nation, pizza tops nearly everyone’s favorite food list — and everyone has an opinion on what is the best? But, when it comes to pizza, do you know Gus? If you don’t then you may just be missing out on the best slice of Detroit square pizza history!

Gus Guerra is known as the Father of Detroit square pizza and it is Gus’ family recipe that is “The pizza everyone copies, but no one equals.” This famous original Guerra family recipe is still served exactly the same today at Cloverleaf Bar & Restaurant and Cloverleaf Pizza carryout locations as when Gus first served it in 1946 as the original owner of Buddy’s Rendezvous on Conant in Detroit, where it was love at first bite for customers!

So go ahead, read on about Who Gus Is and then visit Cloverleaf Bar & Restaurant in Eastpointe for a slice of pizza heaven – Gus Guerra’s original square pizza. You’ll be glad you did!

The Father of Detroit’s Original Square Pizza

In 1946 pizza wasn’t being served at many places in Detroit but soon many took their first bite of what is now famously known as Detroit-style pizza when Cloverleaf founder, Gus Guerra and his wife Anna (Passalacqua) first introduced her mother’s recipe – the thick crusted, square pie topped first with a layer of cheese followed with a layer of tomato sauce – at their first bar Buddy’s Rendezvous. Gus Guerra sold Buddy’s in 1953 along with his pizza recipe and purchased Cloverleaf Bar in East Detroit, now known as the City of Eastpointe. Cloverleaf has grown from a small neighborhood bar which Gus described as looking like “a little white farm house” into the Eastside institution it is today.

Since Gus Guerra introduced the square pizza to Detroit, many establishments began making the square pizza but it has been said this original recipe is “The one everyone copies but no one equals.” To this day, Buddy’s Pizza credits Gus as the founder of Detroit square pizza.

Award-Winning Pizza Since 1946

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Throughout the years Cloverleaf has received many awards for their famous pizza, including the most recent honor of being named one of the 101 Best Pizzas in America by the Daily Meal in 2013.

Other awards and accolades Cloverleaf has received include: 1st place at the International Pizza Challenge in the Non-Traditional category in the region in 2011, and being named among the Top 10 pizzas in Detroit as well as taking home the 1st place North American Pizza Pizzazz™ honor in 2009.