Team behind Flour Shop to open Pizza Baby in Elizabeth and Wesley Heights this year

What’s happening: The New York-style pizza joint will open its first location in Wesley Heights, as Axios reported last year. Called Pizza Baby West, the restaurant is targeting a June 1 opening.

• Pizza Baby East in Elizabeth will open later this year.

Why it matters: Both will be owned and operated by Art & Commerce Food Group, which also includes the popular Park Road Shopping Center restaurant Flour Shop.

Details: Pizza Baby East will occupy the former MY Realtor space near The People’s Market. Construction will begin this spring. It will be an intimate setup, seating 20 people with outdoor seating. The restaurant will offer pickup and delivery, and it’ll have a wine program focusing on boutique wines.

• Sommelier Chip Townsend, who has been with the group for nearly 15 years, will oversee the beverage program.
• They’ll bake Italian-inspired, naturally leavened bread at both locations. It’ll be available for purchase.
• The restaurants will be modern, meaning, “local and sustainable ingredients, electric equipment and the process of natural fermentation for both flavor and health,” Steven De Falco of Art & Commerce Food Group tells Axios. 

Pizza Baby West will be larger, seating 90 people outside and around 70 people inside.

You’ll also be able to see the dough room. The open concept is similar to Flour Shop, which chef Trey Wilson opened six years ago.

Menu: Expect similar options at both locations, including plenty of New York-style pizza, big salads with local ingredients, snacks and vegan options. The emphasis will be on local, from the Siano Mozzarella, to the organic flour from North Carolina’s Lindley Mills, to Charlotte’s Corrado Gelato for dessert.

Location: Pizza Baby West will be at 2135 Thrift Road next to the Coterie. Pizza Baby East will be at 1603 Elizabeth Ave. next to Customshop.

Flashback: Pizza Baby is the third endeavor for Wilson, who opened Customshop in Elizabeth 16 years ago. His longstanding business in the neighborhood helped the restaurant land the Elizabeth location next to Customshop.

• The team walked through the space once and fell in love with it, they tell Axios.
• “We had just returned from a trip to NYC, where we were tremendously inspired by the micro, chef-driven, independent restaurants of Brooklyn,” De Falco says. 

Check out renderings of Pizza Baby East: 

Go deeper: Mexican restaurant, pizza joint and 2 bars join booming Thrift Road area

Check out what else is opening soon: Anticipated openings