LaRosa’s closes its 4th Dayton-area pizza restaurant in the last 4 years

LaRosa’s announced this morning, Monday Nov. 2, that the pizza restaurant it operated since 2006 in Englewood has shut down permanently, leaving only one LaRosa’s pizzeria still operating in the Dayton area for the Cincinnati-based chain.

LaRosa’s officials said in a release that “challenges from the closure of the (restaurant’s) dining room due to COVID-19 and the imminent expiration of its lease made operating the Englewood pizzeria no longer feasible.”

The closure of the Englewood location at 7712 Hoke Road marks the fourth local LaRosa’s to close permanently in the last four years, reducing the chain’s presence in the Dayton market from five locations in 2016 to one. A Kettering location that had been open since 2007 shut its doors in February 2020, prior to the coronavirus pandemic’s full impact. A Beavercreek location was closed in 2018, and a Huber Heights pizzeria was shuttered in 2016.

“Our team has worked tirelessly to make the Englewood pizzeria a success, and we were making progress prior to the mandatory closure of our dining room because of COVID-19,″ Michael LaRosa, CEO of LaRosa’s, Inc., said in a release. "Unfortunately, Englewood’s pick-up and delivery business along with only limited dine-in seating wasn’t enough to keep us going. We are so appreciative of the efforts of each and every one of our team members. And we want to thank all of our Englewood guests for their love and support over the past 14 years.”

Hourly and salaried employees at LaRosa’s Englewood location will receive severance compensation, and some have been offered employment at LaRosa’s Centerville restaurant, company officials said.

The remaining LaRosa’s at 291 E. Alex-Bell Road in the Cross Pointe center was the Cincinnati-based chain’s first entry in the Dayton market. It opened in 2002.

“With our Centerville pizzeria now our only Dayton location, we’re going to work even harder to make our guests smile,” LaRosa said in a release. “We hope the friends that we’ve served throughout Dayton over the past nearly 20 years will stop into our Centerville dining room or pick up an order.”

LaRosa’s Gift Cards or Buddy Cards can be redeemed at Centerville or any other LaRosa’s pizzeria.

LaRosa’s was founded in 1954 on Cincinnati’s West Side by Buddy LaRosa. It operates more than 60 pizzerias in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.

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