A New York-based pizza chain has big plans for Houston. Called Singas Famous Pizza, the restaurant will soon open three locations in Cypress, Katy, and Stafford.

The first Singas Famous Pizza opened in Elmhurst, above the Bronx, in 1967, from founder Bill Singas, who apparently was not fully clued in to the definition of the word "famous."

A decade later, current president and CEO Greg Tsanis and his brother Chris bought the business, and went on to open more locations in the tristate area. They made it a little more "famous." Greg and Chris are natives of Greece who emigrated to the U.S. When it comes to food, the Greeks know what's up.

Pizza is the centerpiece of the menu, although there are also pastas, sub sandwiches, chicken tenders, wings, jalapeno poppers, garlic bread, and French fries.

They bake their pizzas in metal pans, the approach taken with deep-dish pizza, but Singas' crust is a regular New York-style thin crust. (They also offer a cauliflower crust for the GF crowd.)

The chain has been a favorite for South Asians in the New York area, and that influence can be seen on menu items such as the Chef's Special pizza with tikka sauce, green pepper, onion, and choice of South-Asian cottage cheese (paneer) or chicken.

And in a nod to the heritage of the owners, there's a Greek pizza with tomato sauce, spinach, feta cheese, and olive. There's also a garlic chicken and broccoli, plus classics like pepperoni, meat lovers, and a loaded "supreme."

In 2004, the company launched a franchising program, which has expanded in recent years. There are currently close to 40 locations across the U.S., mostly in the New York-New Jersey-Delaware area but with a dozen new openings penciled in for Tennessee, South Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky, and Florida.

That includes seven new locations set to open across Texas, with four in the DFW area, as follows:

• Coppell: 817 S. Macarthur Blvd. #105
• Plano: 8245 Preston Rd.
• Frisco: 13089 Main St. #400
• Prosper: address still TBA

There is also a franchisee opening three locations in Houston:

• 10758 Cypress Creek Pkwy, Houston
• 11388 Fountain Lake Dr, Stafford
• 25830 Westheimer Pkwy, Katy