News-Sentinel Staff Writer
WOODBRIDGE — A popular pizzeria will be reopening its doors this winter, but with a new look, new menu and new name.
Noah Almager said when he purchased the Woodbridge Pizzeria, located at 18879 N. Lower Sacramento Road, the intent was to simply renovate the decades-old building and bring in new furniture.
But once crews started peeling the walls back, it soon became clear a simple remodel was not going to be enough.
“There was just dry rot everywhere,” he said. “The materials that existed in the old building... there was no way we could just go back into (the building), and then we figured we would have had to continually remodel things.”
As a result, the portion of the pizzeria that served as a lobby, bar and restaurant was torn down Wednesday.
It was the first step in the demolition and remodel process, Almager said.
Once the new building is complete, Almager said it will look a lot like the former structure. The room’s layout will be identical to the old one, he said, but the ceilings will be higher, and the furniture will be new.
The building’s roof will be extended to provide covered patio dining on both Augusta Street and Lower Sacramento Road, as well, something the former pizzeria did not have.
“We’ll have heaters, fans and lighting so you’ll get the full experience of outdoor, or open air seating,” Almager said. “It will kind of have the open feeling concept that West Oak Nosh or Oxford Kitchen have Downtown.”
Almager is hoping to open doors by the end of December or early January, and with a new name: Pi Bar.
The restaurant will still focus on pizza, he said, but the old menu will be replaced with new recipes, and new additions such as wings, fries and other snacks.
The bar will serve a variety of beer and wine, as well as offer up a selection of cocktails not seen in Lodi or Woodbridge, before, Almager said.
There are also plans to offer a brunch menu in the future, but Almager said he wanted to see how well Pi Bar did before adding that amenity to the kitchen.
Noah and his wife own Dry Creek Liquors, next door to the pizzeria on Augusta Street.
He said they wanted to revamp the menu to offer a ‘casual dining’ experience for families, as well as a place people could stop in at lunch or after work.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun once it’s done,” he said. “We also want to focus on keeping the cost of things down. We know times are tough, and we want to make this a spot where you can bring the family or go on a date, not once a month, but once a week or more.”