Gino's takes over short-lived Farmingdale pizzeria Dalers

Gino’s Pizza is back in Farmingdale — well, sort of. Last week, a Gino’s Pizza replaced Dalers Pizza Parlor, the short-lived pizzeria that opened late last year on the same block where Gino’s Pizza held court from 1981 to 2019. The new Gino’s has no connection to the old Gino’s.

There are scores of Gino’s on Long Island and some of them are related to the original Gino, Luigi Branchinelli, who opened eponymous pizzerias in Far Rockaway and Lynbrook before founding his flagship in Long Beach in 1962. But there are far more Gino’s with no relationship to the Branchinelli family. “He never registered his name,” his daughter Carolann Nicotra said in 2017. “If you were his friend, he didn’t mind if you used his name, or the signature font.”

The first Farmingdale Gino’s was owned by John Filagrossi, whose father had worked at Gino’s in Long Beach before opening his own spot, now closed, in Bay Shore. Shortly after he lost his lease at 333 Main St., Filagrossi opened Gino's on Route 109 in West Babylon.

The owners of the Farmingdale property, Hauppauge-based Staller Associates Inc., had initially planned to build a four-story mixed-use project on that block, dominated by a now-closed CVS. That plan got scotched by the village but, eventually, the corner was rebuilt to accommodate a stunning new pizzeria, Dalers Pizza Parlor, which opened with great fanfare last December.

Dalers was owned by Ben LoManto, who also owns Vespa Italian Kitchen & Bar, and he seemingly spared no expense on the renovation, which included black-and-white checkerboard tile floors and white leather booths.

Farmingdale’s new Gino’s is owned by Alex Tulley, Michael Grimaudo and brothers Joe and Mike Licata. The group, with no ties to Branchinelli Gino’s, also owns Gino’s pizzerias in Northport, Nesconset, Kings Park and Commack. Tulley said that the group was looking for the right spot for their next location and a broker reached out with the news that Dalers “was looking to sell. After that, it happened really quickly.”

There wasn’t a lot to do to the space besides changing the branding. “Ben built a beautiful store,” Tulley noted. Gino’s kept some of the Dalers staff and trained them on new recipes and procedures.

The extensive menu starts with pizza — more than 20 varieties ($20.50 to $30.75) ranging from regular/Sicilian/Grandma to more fanciful creations such as rigatoni vodka, the CBR (chicken cutlets, bacon, ranch dressing, Cheddar and mozzarella) and the “house special” (sausage, meatballs, pepperoni, mushrooms, peppers, onions, olives, extra cheese and, upon request, anchovies). Personal pies can be ordered with gluten-free or cauliflower crusts; there are calzones, rolls and arancini; heros, panini, wraps and salads. Dozens of pastas ($17.75 to $25.50) and entrees ($23.50 to $26.50) come with spaghetti or a salad. Lunch portions are smaller, prices lower.

Gino’s of Farmingdale is big on promotions: Monday and Tuesdays are “pasta nights” with dinner-sized portions, plus salad, for $16.99; Wednesday “pizza nights” feature $15 regular, grandma and Sicilian pies; On Thursday and Sunday, “Parms” of chicken, veal, meatball, eggplant or shrimp are $18.99 with pasta and a salad.

Tulley knows he is moving into a crowded market with Vico, Casa Stellina and Vespa (which also serves pizza) all located on the same block. Then again, whereas those three establishments trade in pies informed by Italian pizza styles, Gino’s is a straight-ahead, New York-style slice joint.

Gino's, 331 Main St., Farmingdale, 516-550-7502, ginosfarmingdale.com. Open Sunday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.