Smith Street Favorite Savoia Closes
Sad to say, but news about restaurant closures barely fazes us anymore. Especially considering that even the best eateries in the most sought after neighborhoods struggle to stay afloat, amidst increasing competition and rising rents (case in point: Arthur on Smith, a critical darling that shuttered in less than a year).
What’s really surprising is the places that somehow manage to survive, like Arthur’s nearby neighbor Savoia (yes, that green-awning’d Italian spot), which occupied a double-wide space on the strip for almost a decade. And while it may have been a happy harbinger of things to come back in 2006 (alongside bygone favorites like Quercy and Chestnut) pleasing Carroll Gardens-based, Puglia-born expats with pizze rustica and paccheri pesto, it hasn’t stood a fighting chance against newcomers like Battersby, Dassara, and Nightingale 9.
So yes, Savoia has finally given up the ghost, disconnecting their phone, facebook page and website, and stacking their scuffed chairs, pasta machines and meat grinders against the buff-colored walls. Because if the record rents currently being paid by Rag & Bone are any indication, it’s going to take a lot more than pizza to finance a stay on Smith Street.