SLO County pizza spot closes after 43 years — but its other location is still open
Nardonne’s La Famiglia Pizzeria has closed its Atascadero location after more than 40 years — but you won’t have to go far if you are craving a slice of the beloved restaurant’s signature Sicilian-style pizzas.
Nardonne’s closed its doors at 8501 El Camino Real on April 23, notifying customers of the closure with a sign posted on the restaurant’s window and social media posts.
“Thank you to all our dedicated customers,” management wrote on the sign. “We appreciate the last 43 years of support. Grandma is semi-retiring.”
Owner John Dougherty told The Tribune the Atascadero location was closing to give his mother more free time — though she will still be working at the pizza restaurant’s other location in Baywood Park. It will also free up Dougherty to focus on his new business, JD Estates Sales, he said.
“We closed because we wanted to close,” he said. “We got a deal we couldn’t refuse. ... It was time to move on from things.”
The first Nardonne’s opened in Baywood Park in 1976, under the ownership of Dougherty’s parents, John and Janice Dougherty.
“I’ve been working in there since I was five,” Dougherty laughed. “They used to put me up on a wall crate so I could do the register.”
In 1980, Barbara Lehmann opened a franchise of the popular pizza restaurant in Atascadero. Other locations in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo also opened up over the years, but though those have since shuttered.
The Dougherty family ultimately returned to owning both the Baywood Park and Atascadero pizza restaurants in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
Longtime customers were upset by the news of Nardonne’s closing when it broke on social media.
“Very sad, I have been going to Nardonne’s for many years,” one person wrote on Nextdoor. “Best pizza anywhere.”
Dougherty said one of the things he will most miss about the restaurant was its customers.
“We’ve really had a loyal base,” he said. “And it’s stuck through, you know, all the years of all the other pizza places coming in.”
Once when on vacation in the Cayman Islands, his family even met people from California who knew of the pizza restaurant. They also had a big fan base from the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas who when driving through would call ahead to make sure they got their Nardonne’s.
“I think it’s just pretty neat that you can have something with the quality, and have the dedication and loyalty of our customers,” he said.
Though it’s sad to see one location close, Dougherty said he’s excited about what is to come.
Right now, he’s diving into starting up his new business. He noted that JD Estate Sales is partnering with Jack’s Helping Hand so that a portion of all his sales will go to the nonprofit organization.
Meanwhile, Nardonne’s La Famiglia Pizzeria still remains open at 715 Santa Maria Ave., Suite A, in Baywood Park — meaning you won’t have to go far to get a slice of their pizza.
As Doughtery put it: “My mom always said, ‘When it’s 110 in Atascadero — drive over to the coast, get a pizza and relax.’”
This story was originally published May 11, 2023 at 11:51 AM.
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