Dalers Pizza Coming To Farmingdale; It 'Really Called To Me': Owner

FARMINGDALE, NY — A new pizzeria is coming to Farmingdale, and it boasts the village's namesake.

Dalers Pizza Parlor is targeting an opening date by the end of January, replacing Gino's and the former Minuteman Press building on Main Street, says owner Ben LoManto. He also owns Vespa down the block.

LoManto says he has been in the pizza business for his "entire life" until he veered off the path for Vespa. However, he saw an opening and seized an opportunity to get back to his dough, cheese and sauce roots.

"Farmingdale has a void for a really good pizzeria," LoManto told Patch. "Farmingdale is such a great neighborhood. Really good people, good administration, great customers, it’s a great downtown area. I felt almost like I had to do it. It was something that really called to me. The moment [the space] became available, I jumped on it immediately.”

Farmingdale is not lacking in pizzerias, with roughly a dozen in the area. LoManto, however, plans to turn back the clock and bring an older style of pizza to town.

“If you walk into a lot of pizzerias nowadays, there are layers of showcases with 20 to 30 different pizzas," he said. "Everyone’s doing that now. People like the more the better, and I’m actually going to reverse that a little. I’m going to go back to the way it was 30 years ago and kind of do a handful of pizzas but do them exceptionally well. I have a lot of recipes that I’ve done in the past that I’m going to reinvent them a little bit and go back to the old school mentality: make a few of them exceptionally well, very well-cooked, nothing crazy, nothing over the top where it doesn’t even make sense anymore."

While the pizza pies will be a throwback to three decades ago, the interior design will go back seven of them. The designer did an homage to the 1950s with black and white flooring and white granite.

"It’s going to look really, really cool," LoManto said.

He is planning to make a Connecticut-style pizza similar to Sally's Apizza in New Haven. Sally's happens to be one of the favorite pizzerias of Dave Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports known for his many pizza reviews.

The pizzaiola said he is hoping to get a visit from Portnoy around three months after he opens.

“You know what? I’m going to poke the bear," LoManto said.

He plans to work out the kinks before he aggressively pursues a visit from Portnoy, but he said he "1000 percent" hopes to bring the pizza reviewer into Farmingdale for a slice.

LoManto is also planning a Sicilian marinara pizza with garlic, basil and fresh olive oil, as well as an oreganata with sauteed bread crumbs and onions. And his pies will be thin crust.

"Anything with a thick edge on it, it’s not pizza; it’s more like bread with sauce on it," he said.

Dalers Pizza Parlor is named after the nickname for Farmingdale residents and those who attended the town's school district. LoManto, who lives in Massapequa Park, said he hopes to not sound "corny," but he loves Farmingdale.

"I’ve always loved Farmingdale. It’s a quintessential village here on Long Island. I’ve been really blessed with Vespa here in Farmingdale ... They’ve been really good to me. It’s a really good administration, really good customers, really good people. They know us, we know them. We’ve become almost family. At the end of the day, I wanted to pay a little homage to Farmingdale. I was like, ‘Oh wow, Dalers.’ After a while, it kind of rung. ‘Wow, Dalers.’ I’m like, ‘What the heck? Let me pay a little homage to Farmingdale.’ I love Farmingdale. I love the people. I want to do a lot with [Howitt Middle School]. I really want to incorporate the community, the people and us. Vespa and Dalers."

Dalers Pizza Parlor can be followed on Instagram @DalersPizza.