STUART \u2500\u2500 Ian & Kye\u2019s Pizza, the popular downtown Jensen Beach pizzeria, has opened a second location.<\/p>\n
Specializing in Chicago-style thin pizza since 2020, owner Kye Maiolo has opened a new Ian & Kye\u2019s Pizza across the street from Colab Kitchen in the Creek District of Stuart.<\/p>\n
Also known as tavern-style,\u00a0Chicago-style thin pizza features a very thin, crispy, cracker-like crust that is topped with sauce and cheese all the way to the edges.\u00a0\u00a0This style of pizza is cut into little bite sized, sharable squares, rather than triangles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There are ten specialty pizzas on the menu, including the popular Chi Town Sausage, which is loaded with cheese and sausage, Chicago style, of course. Another favorite is Kye Willy\u2019s Sauceless, a white pizza with a garlic cream base of blended cheese, spinach and sliced mushrooms. You can also get creative and build your own pie.<\/p>\n
So how does a Jensen Beach native like Maiolo end up in the Chicago-style pizza business? His dad is from southern Illinois and Maiolo\u2019s first job, at 16 years old, was working at Pusateri\u2019s Chicago Pizza in Stuart.<\/p>\n
He took the skills and passion he acquired after years of working there and set out on his own in 2015. With the help of his father, he opened his first pizzeria in Delray Beach. Windy City Pizza was successful until they sold it in 2020.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe put every last dollar we had into it, and we made it work,\u201d Maiolo said. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t the greatest location, but I believed in it. I knew if I could make it there. I\u2019d be alright.\u201d<\/p>\n
When his brother, and namesake of both current pizzerias, passed away in 2020, Maiolo sold the Delray Beach shop and moved back to his hometown to open the first Ian & Kye\u2019s on Indian River Drive. Although he is the sole owner of both locations, it\u2019s no mistake that his brother\u2019s name comes first in the name.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to honor him,\u201d said Maiolo.<\/p>\n
In the summer of 2024, the 34-year-old entrepreneur bought the Stuart property, a former standalone office building, at 117 SE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. After many permitting delays and several months of renovations, Maiolo announced the opening on social media on Oct. 23.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you to everyone that made this possible. We appreciate all your support. Hope to see you all very soon! God bless,\u201d Maiolo wrote.<\/p>\n
The menu at both pizza shops also includes salads, appetizers, wings, and hot sandwiches like the Chicago Italian beef, a sandwich of thin, slow-roasted beef slices served on a long Italian roll and drenched in a seasoned beef broth. There are also desserts, beer and wine.<\/p>\n
The new location has outdoor patio seating that can accommodate about 25 people. Maiolo said he expects most of his business to be take-out.<\/p>\n
The new pizzeria and the downtown Jensen location\u2019s operating hours are the same. Ian & Kye\u2019s is open from 11:30 a.m. \u2013 9 p.m., Tuesday-Thursday; and 11:30 a.m. \u2013 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturdays; and 11:30 a.m. \u2013 9 p.m. on Sundays. They are closed on Mondays.<\/p>\n
The new Ian & Kye\u2019s is located at 117 SE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Stuart. The original shop is located at 3310 NE Indian River Drive, Jensen Beach.<\/p>\n