After six years of business, Tavolino Pizza & Lounge closed its doors in June but a new pizzeria will soon be in its place. The restaurant space in the Algiers neighborhood located at 141 Delaronde St. will be redeveloped as a new pizzeria, Nighthawk Napoletana. The pizza restaurant plans to be open by September of this year.
Co-owner of Tavolino, Suzanne Accorsi told The Times-Picayune that decision to close the restaurant was a difficult one to make. Managing two other restaurants, Pal’s Lounge in Faubourg St. John and Martine’s Lounge in Old Metairie, Accorsi has also been dealing with health-related issues.
Leading the Nighthawk kitchen is chef Adrian Chelette who was the co-owner of Ancora in Uptown, another Neapolitan-styled pizza shop. He also ran the kitchen at Margot’s on Frenchmen Street, a wood-fired pizzeria. Inspiration for the name Nighthawk comes from the pop-up shop Chelette ran as a side gig.
Chelette’s business partners Brett Jones and Bryson Aust run the successful Barracuda Taco Stand with three locations in Uptown, Algiers, and Baton Rouge.
Chelette will continue making his signature Neapolitan-styled pizza, following the dough rules of only using flour, water, salt, and yeast, then baking each pizza in a wood-fired oven. The trio plan to have a short menu of Italian dishes along with eight types of pizza to choose from. The menu will include salads meatballs, bruschetta, and arancini, according to the Times-Picayune article.
According to permits, the renovations planned for Nighthawk include a wood-fire oven centerpiece, a full bar serving Italian cocktails, and a small patio.
