Business & Tech

Bits & Pizzas On Track to Open by Summer, Owner Says

Build out of the restaurant located at 8099 Main St. in the village of Dexter began on Jan. 7.

Plans to bring a fine dining New York-style pizzeria to Dexter are moving forward despite some minor setbacks in 2012.

Bits & Pizzas owners Robert and Mindy D’Oria said build out of the restaurant, located at 8099 Main St., began on Monday, with plans to open for business by the summer.

"It took us a lot longer to get to this point than we originally expected, but we've put together a very skilled and experienced contractor team that is helping us execute our vision for Bits & Pizzas," Rob D'Oria posted on the restaurant's Facebook page.

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In addition to pizza, the restaurant will offer a selection of hot and cold plates inspired by Mexican, Indian, Mediterranean and other cultures crafted by Mindy, a culinary student at Washtenaw Community College.

"The restaurant is going to be fine dining meets casual takeout," D'Oria said in a previous interview "We'll certainly have the pizzas that people know and love, but we'll also offer more varities that you don't typically see.

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"Our stated objective is to be the best pizza place in Michigan."

To that end, the building, a former art gallery, is being extensively altered, with walls, trees and other major property features being removed to make room to seat more than 100 customers with an outdoor dining area.

The basement area will also be used for a separate street-side entrance and bar expansion in the future, although for now the focus is on a family-friendly ground level dine-in restaurant, where patrons will be able to watch the kitchen staff prepare pizzas while they eat.

Initially Bits and Pizzas will be open from 4 to 11 p.m. and will not offer delivery, instead opening for dinner only. As the business grows, it will include a lunch buffet and expand its catering and delivery options.

D'Oria said he hopes to open the restaurant by June; however, patrons can keep track of the restaurant's progress through periodic posts on its Facebook page.

"We'll post some pictures as the build-out continues and start zeroing in on a grand opening date," he said.

For more information, visit http://bitsandpizzas.com/.


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