The Pizzeria opening in Smithtown

Restaurants haven’t had an easy time of it since the pandemic, but The Pizzeria just keeps rolling along. On Thursday, the LI chainlet will open its seventh location, in Smithtown.

The Pizzeria takes over the Branch Plaza spot that was, until last July, Buona Sera. "We’d had our eye on this space for a while," said Paul Saccoccio, who owns The Pizzeria with his brother, Dan Saccoccio, and childhood friend Cliff Weinstein. "It’s a great location." Saccoccio said the owners "had been looking to get out for a while."

The Pizzeria got its start in 2020 as a 500-square-foot operation at Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove, but successive shops have gotten bigger and bigger: Bayport (800 square feet), Islip, Lindenhurst and Bay Shore (more than double that) and, in April, Babylon, which weighs in at 5,000 square feet.

Like all but the Lake Grove and Bayport locations, Smithtown (3,000 square feet) is divided into three distinct areas: pizza takeout (with self-serve tables), a contemporary dining room and a bar. Saccoccio said his team was "gutting the place and the renovation will look like a bigger version of Bay Shore."

When the new location was announced last summer, Saccoccio hoped to open by January 2025 but noted that "I’m always six months off in my predictions." So, by that measure, Smithtown is ahead of schedule.

The Pizzeria, 88 E Main St., Smithtown, 631-771-1022, thepizzeriany.com, Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 7 days a week.