New Sam Fox restaurant, Fly Bye, brings Detroit-style pizza to Phoenix

Local restaurateur Sam Fox is expanding a tasty dining option he launched during the pandemic.

Flashback: Fly Bye began as a takeout-only ghost kitchen at The Yard in north central Phoenix, serving up Detroit-style pizza and chicken wings and strips.

Driving the news: The first standalone Fly Bye opened in July at Desert Ridge Marketplace in north Phoenix and another is expected in Arcadia soon.

• Fly Bye still caters to carryout and delivery orders, but the new locations will have dining rooms as well.
• They'll also have additional options, including a pizza called Lebanese Mom, with marinated tomato, roasted garlic, spinach leaf, feta yogurt and za'atar.

Of note: Fox — who's behind The Henry, North Italia, Culinary Dropout and more — sold his restaurant group to The Cheesecake Factory for $308 million in 2019.

• He still serves as the CEO of Fox Restaurant Concepts.

Over the weekend, my fiancé and I took my soon-to-be nieces to Dave & Buster's at Desert Ridge and decided to stop at Fly Bye for lunch because, well, pizza? Chicken tenders? Even picky youngsters like those.

My thought bubble: The food was delicious. The pizza was cheesy. The chicken was crispy. But my favorite menu item was the Brussels sprouts tossed in spicy honey, Parmesan and bread crumbs.

• FWIW: My young dining companions did not share my affinity for the veggies.