Nardonne’s buys 2nd St. Baywood Park property
Nardonne’s Pizzeria has applied for a liquor license to operate an eating establishment at 1305 2nd St. in Baywood, next to the MerriMaker. The applicant is listed as Ben Doughtery whose family operates the very popular Nardonne’s La Famiglia Pizzeria,now located a block away at 715 Santa Maria Ave. The new location on Baywood’s busiest strip – 2nd St – across from High St Deli, has been for sale for a year and a half and according to realtor Farrell Smyth’s website, was sold for $1.1 million on August 21.The busy block has plenty of activity next to home town gathering spot and music venue Merri Maker and across from a new proposed two story, mixed-use building championed by Alex Benson. Confirming the news, restaurant founder Jan Doughtery, Ben’s mom, says the family enterprise started on Second St 50 years ago in 1976 and this move is like coming home. “We are already doing a complete remodeling of the building” says Jan and hope to be open before January “We are all so excited”. Jan says the family has not decided what to do with the current rented location tucked away at the end of a strip center at Third and Santa Maria.Certainly the new site offers more visibility. Although the restaurant was founded in Baywood/Los Osos they moved away in 1994 only to return in 2015. A news article at the time points to their roots here. Ben Dougherty stated,”We returned to Baywood Park for many reasons. I was born and raised here and have 3 kids. I knew I would always move back at some point, it was just a matter of time. As I got older, I realized what my priorities were. I wanted a beautiful, clean, safe place for my wife and kids and to be closer to the rest of my family.” Nardonne’s also added a potential half block fenced beer garden concert yard on the corner of Santa Maria and Third over a year ago. The posted liquor license application says the notice was made Sept 30,2026 allowing for a 30-day comment period. The commercial retail building in Baywood sits on a 6250sf lot and has about 1500sf under roof. It also has a 20′ x 30′ secondary building in the back. Jan says they plan to convert the back area to a dining room. Right now the building’s windows in front are boarded up. Nardonne’s is famous for two styles of pizza say enthusiasts. They include Sicilian Thick-Crust: Known for hearty, square-cut or round pies served on silver pizza platters. It features a thick, crunchy, cheesy crust that is rich and doughy rather than a thin New York style slice.Also Thin-Style / Tavern Style: A lighter, crispier house-thin crust option that can be customized with normal or crispy bake styles and various sauces (marinara, garlic butter, or olive oil).