Leah Badolato was busy showing diners to their tables in the almost-standing-room-only last day of business for Bado’s Pizza Grill & Ale House.
[1]Bado’s has been a landmark on Beverly Road since Reagan was president, opening in 1984 as Pizza Piazza, in a smaller shop across the street from its current location. The move across the street called for a name change, to Bado’s Pizza and Deli. After securing a liquor license in 1999, the name changed again.
“I was born the year the restaurant opened,” said Leah. “I grew up here. This place made me the person I am. It taught me dedication and drive.”
[2]She only told her 5-year-old daughter about the closing last night, and she says there were lots of tears.
The last day was marked by a return to 1984 prices: An 8-cut pizza for $3.95, and if you felt like splurging, you could get the 12-cut for another $2.
Leah has a personal training business, but she will still work with her husband, Chris Smith, and her father, Frank Badolato, on the family’s food truck. She said the Beverly Road space has a buyer, but did not disclose any further information.
Doug Platt grew up in the South Hills and moved away to Fort Worth Texas. He was coming back to visit family for Thanksgiving. “My sister sent me the article about Bado’s closing, and I had to come here,” he said. “I was in high school when it opened, and I spent a lot of time at Bado’s.”
[3]“This was always a favorite place for our family,” said Doug’s mom, Ginger, a Providence Point resident, with her husband, Don.
Jim and Mary Galiardi, Whitehall residents, have been coming to Bado’s for 25 years for what they call “the best pizza and pancakes around.” They’ll miss the Sunday breakfasts just as much as the pizza the restaurant is best known for.
“We’re sad to see it go,” said Jim. “The restaurant really has great character. You don’t see that very often anymore.”