The first European settlers to arrive on the shores of Lake St Clair where the city of St Clair Shores is today were of French and German origin. They began to set up their homes at the beginning of the 18th century then set to farming the surrounding lands. L'anse Creuse, as it was known then, remained a farming community until the early 1900s when it began to be seen as more of a lakeside vacation resort. St Clair Shores continued to evolve as a resort during the days of prohibition when it attracted many illicit establishments connected with the illegal sale of alcohol and smuggling as well as multiple gambling dens. Eventually, St Clair Shores began to clean up its act. The majority of the remaining farmlands were purchased by town planners for the construction of housing to help alleviate a shortage problem in Detroit. By the 1960s, St Clair Shores had become a desirable bedroom community with a population of around seventy thousand. Among those numerous residents were a few of Italian descent who decided the time was ideal to set themselves up in business. They did that by opening the first pizzerias in St Clair Shores.

St Clair Shores in Michigan is known for Sicilian-style pizza

Whether or not the pizza chefs in this Michigan city are descendants of Sicilian families is not a known fact, but St Clair Shores is known for Sicilian-style pizza. That said though, Sicilian-style is not the only type of pie on the menus of the pizzerias in St Clair Shores. There's a wide variety of different dough bases on offer that range between traditional Italian thin crust and Detroit-style pies. Sicilian-style pizza in its authentic form has a thick crust that's spongier than a regular thick crust pizza base and it's baked in a rectangular tray rather than a round one. In Sicily where it originates from, it wouldn't have a cheese topping either, but Sicilian-style pies served in the US are often finished with cheese to suit American tastes.

Best Delivery Pizza in St Clair Shores, Michigan

To get the best delivery pizza in St Clair Shores you have to order from a pizzeria that knows how to ensure your pie is going to arrive at your door looking as good as it did when it came out of the oven. One St Clair Shores pizzeria that's expert at doing just that is Bellacino's Pizza. Bellacino's Pizza is housed in a functional premises on Harper Avenue that has a real family-friendly feel. It may be unpretentious and definitely not on the glamorous side, but their pizzas tell a different story. Get a delivery pie from Bellacino's and it'll be the real Italian deal whether you go for their Sicilian-style bake or the regular thin crust.

Best Takeout Pizza in St Clair Shores, Michigan

If you've been swimming lengths of the Lac St Clair public pool and it's left you ravenously hungry, don't panic. You're not too far from where you can pick up the best take-out pizza in St Clair Shores. Head for Harper Avenue and you'll come across Detroit Style Pizza which is where you need to be. Detroit Style Pizza is a pizzeria that likes to live up to its name and they bake a super range of Detroit-style pizzas that are big and square that make super take-out pies. When you walk through the door of Detroit Style Pizza don't be put off by the eclectic décor and multi-colored tile floor. As the old saying goes, the proof is in the pudding or in this case the pies.

Best Pizza near St Clair Shores, Michigan

Sterling Heights

If the kids have come home with good grade reports and deserve a fun day out, take them to Sterling Heights. Sterling Heights is just a fifteen mile drive north of St Clair Shores and a place with some very kid-friendly fun things to do. If the weather is good they'll have a ball in the Red Oaks Water Park no matter what age they are as there are chutes and flumes suitable for even the youngest of hard working scholars. If you have a budding zoologist in the family then a visit to The Reptarium will freak them out completely, especially when they get to hold some of the reptiles. Before you take them for a pizza at Cloverleaf Pizza on 15 Mile Road let them loose for an hour in the Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Park and you'll have a very happy brood.

Rochester

For a day outdoors amid the beauty of nature one of the best places to head for is Rochester. Rochester is around thirty minutes drive from St Clair Shores and where you'll find the beautiful two-hundred acre Bloomer Park. There are some great trails leading through the woodlands in this park for both hiking and mountain biking. If you or anyone going with you is a real cycling fan, take your bikes because Bloomer Park has a special race circuit or velodrome for cycles. If there's snow on the ground when you go, take a sled as the park has a great sledding hill that will keep you busy for hours. Whatever time of year you go to Rochester, don't go home without trying a pie at Grant's Pizza House on North Main Street.

Detroit

With Detroit only twenty odd miles from St Clair Shores, it would be impossible to avoid visiting Motor City at some time or another. What is there to do in Detroit? The answer to that is plenty. A must for music fans is the Motown Museum which is housed in the property where the genre was first created. Taking a look around the Detroit Institute of Arts or the Museum of Contemporary Art are also a must do as there are some incredible collections on display in both. For an afternoon with a difference visiting Belle Island is a great idea. There you'll find an aquarium, a nature center, a museum and a swim beach. Any of the parks on Belle Island are super spots for a picnic too so pick up a pie from Cottage Inn Pizza on Monroe Street before you go.