A top candidate for the most popular Ann Arbor food establishment among students is Joe’s Pizza, located on East University Avenue and South University Avenue. Lines for a slice of pizza can stretch toward the Diag on a Friday or Saturday night, described by The Michigan Daily in 2024 as “a visual consensus on the best pizza in town.” It’s one of two Ann Arbor pizza joints currently open that were reviewed by University of Michigan alum and Barstool Sports Founder Dave Portnoy, and won The Daily’s “Best Pizza” award four consecutive years leading up to 2024.
A city staple is usually understood as an establishment woven into a community’s identity. So, Joe’s, ever popular among students, must qualify as an Ann Arbor staple, right? Maybe. Many students might not be aware that Joe’s was founded in Brooklyn, with most locations in New York and Massachusetts. When I mentioned Joe’s to a few of my family members who attended the University decades ago, they had not heard of it — perhaps because the Ann Arbor location opened less than seven years ago.
Joe’s reputation belies the fact that it’s a transplanted business. It’s an outsider like the Chipotle, Raising Cane’s and Starbucks that The Michigan Daily’s Editorial Board says is flattening Ann Arbor’s charm. But a strict definition of an Ann Arbor staple is a myth — it’s the students who determine what is and is not an Ann Arbor staple by spending money at those establishments. These businesses are succeeding because students want them…