Piccolo Trattoria Expanding Footprint At Newtown Shopping Center

NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — Work has begun at Piccolo Trattoria to expand its restaurant operations at the Newtown Shopping Center on West Road.

The 4,146 square foot restaurant, located a few doors down from the ACME, received conditional use and land development approvals in 2022 to expand into the former Dogs and Cats Rule space next door.

The expansion will add 2,000 square feet to the restaurant, allowing it to expand its dining area and enlarge its kitchen.

As part of the expansion, the eatery will also be constructing a 2,212 square foot covered outdoor dining area with 112 seats at the far western end of the shopping center. A knee high wall will surround the patio area to protect diners from the parking area and access road.

The grassy area, where the outdoor seating will be located, had been held in abeyance by the shopping center for six additional parking spaces. Those spaces will now be held in abeyance across the street from the outdoor dining area with a future crosswalk planned between the end of
the shopping center and the future parking area.

Two trees (located at the rear of the new outdoor dining site) will be removed and replaced with other native trees as part of the project. A third tree at the front of the area will remain.

In order to remain viable in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurant owner Fahmi Elabed told the supervisors in 2022 that restaurants now require an outdoor seating component for its customers.

Piccolo secured zoning relief for the project in April 2022, including a variance to permit 59.87 percent impervious coverage ratio, which represents a .22 percent increase over what is presently permitted.

Piccolo Trattoria is expanding its operations into the former Dogs & Cats Rule store, pictured above, at the Newtown Shopping Center. Dogs & Cats Rule relocated to the Village at Newtown Shopping Center several years ago.

A variance was also granted to permit the shopping center to continue to maintain 953 parking spaces, of which 169 are "held in reserve” whereas the patio addition would have required the construction of an additional 15 parking spaces.

The zoning board did add a condition that the outdoor seating area remains outdoor seating and cannot morph into de facto permanent seating.

“This is a great thing for Newtown because Fahmi and Piccolo have been around for a long time,” said Supervisor Phil Calabro. “He’s also been a contributor to community causes. What he gives back is fantastic. It’s nice to see an existing business expanding. This is fantastic for Newtown Township.”

Piccolo also operates restaurants in Doylestown Township at the Barn Plaza and in Pennington, New Jersey.

Piccolo Trattoria is known for its Italian food, including its take out pizza, and as a destination for intimate gatherings for family and friends. All three locations offer an atmosphere of Old World ambience with Italian flair, creativity and quality.