This classic South Phoenix fish shack is about to get a major upgrade

One of the city’s oldest and most beloved eateries will move into a new home — hopefully in time for its 80th anniversary.

The owners of Pete’s Fish & Chips plan to break ground on a new restaurant and drive-thru across the street from one of the chain’s longest-running eateries on South Central Avenue. The project, decades in the making, took a step forward with approval from a Phoenix zoning board last month.

The English-style fish-and-chips shack began in 1947, when World War II veteran Peter Grant and his wife, Ruth, arrived in the Valley. The no-frills “chip house” quickly took off, offering a piece of fried fish and chips for 35 cents or two burgers for 25 cents.

Today, there are eight Pete’s chip shops around the Valley, including the South Central location that currently resides on the major artery at Jones Avenue. The casual restaurants offer crisp fish, shrimp, scallops and other comforting combos and sandwiches. Pete’s has remained classically cheery and no-frills, sporting cheeky, oceanic murals and red picnic tables outside, while accepting only cash at the drive-thru and walk-up ordering windows.

Grant’s daughters, Kathy Adams and Pat Foster, helm the business, and they’re ready to unfold the next chapter in South Phoenix.

“It’s a bigger building. We can serve our customers faster. I think they’re going to like the look of it,” Foster says of the forthcoming new build. “They’re going to get the crown jewel.”

What’s happening at Pete’s on South Central?

The South Central location opened in 1949, becoming the third Pete’s location, architect Mark Abel told the Phoenix Board of Adjustment during a March hearing.

The family has owned the land across Central Avenue, which is currently an empty dirt lot, for about 40 years, Foster estimates. 

“Different things got in our way,” she says. “We’re finally ready to build it.”

The new South Central restaurant will feature three things lacking at the current location: a drive-thru, indoor seating and public restrooms. The patio seating will be air-conditioned.

The restaurant will be accented with river rock as a nod to the nearby Salt River, but also feature pops of classic red and Pete’s signature red cartoon fish sign.

“This one will be the prettiest and most comfortable” of Pete’s locations, Foster says. Despite the upgrades, one thing will remain true: Pete’s is cash-only.

Foster and other Pete’s boosters joined Abel at the March Board of Adjustment hearing to show support and make their case for a new location across the street. The seven-person board weighs zoning matters. No opposition to the project was shared. 

Abel noted that while walk-up service and outdoor dining were the original model for Pete’s, that plan has evolved with the times.

“All of the other Pete’s have a drive-thru, and that’s why this site was purchased,” he said.

The board approved the owners’ plans for the new Pete’s, marking a turning point in the building process. The owners must still have the building permits approved by the city.

The project is getting underway in time for the family-run restaurant chain’s upcoming milestone. Foster hopes to break ground on the new South Central restaurant by summer 2027, as part of its 80th-anniversary celebration.

Foster also hopes the new restaurant will act as a spark along the corridor. The long-delayed Valley Metro light rail expansion was a headache for commuters and neighbors, and “destroyed” many businesses, Foster says. The project was completed in June 2025, six years after construction began.

The restaurateur is optimistic that the future will be brighter now that the light rail project is behind them.

“We’re the beginning of maybe South Central coming back,” Foster says, “and we are really, really excited to be a part of that.”

Pete’s Fish & Chips

3920 S. Central Ave.