Bistro Italia, known for its casual atmosphere and pizza/pasta menu, is moving from Coursey Boulevard to 15255 George O’Neal Road in the old Cafe Americana next to Celebrity Theater. The owners are hoping to open in the middle of October.
“We’d pretty much outgrown that building (their old location) a couple years ago,” said owner Jon Wilkinson.
Pizzas from Bistro Italia.
PROVIDED PHOTO
He’s aiming to recreate the same neighborhood restaurant, like the one he has on Coursey, but the new location will be almost twice as large. He also has big plans after the move.
Once they get settled, he plans to start a brunch menu and have expanded hours. Bistro Italia currently closes between lunch and dinner, but Wilkinson wants to be open from 11 a.m. to 9 or 9:30 p.m. Additionally, the restaurant plans to start using DoorDash for delivery. Wilkinson is also planning for some new menu items and potentially having separate lunch and dinner menus.
In the process of moving to the new space, Wilkinson said, it is likely that Bistro Italia will have to close for a week or two in order to install new equipment and train staff, since they’ll have to have about double the staff for the new place.
Dining and Cooking