2 new pizza places are replacing former restaurants in Butler County

Two new pizza restaurants have opened or are coming soon in Butler County.

Don’s Pizza

Downtown Middletown has a new place to dine out. That’s because Don’s Pizza, which was founded in Germantown in 1970 as Don’s Pizza Palace, opened June 1 at 1126 Central Ave. in Middletown.

The restaurant, which offers pizza, sandwiches, salads and appetizers, is owned and operated by Nick Ranson, son of founder Don Ranson.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, noon to 11 p.m. Saturday and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.

The new location was formerly occupied by Blast Furnace Pizza, which opened Dec. 15, 2017, and was named in honor of Middletown’s steelmaking history. The restaurant closed Dec. 5, 2018, with no warning to its employees or the building’s owners.

Domino’s 

A company with a national presence in the pizza delivery business is moving into a site previously occupied by Marco’s Pizza.

The new Domino’s location at 419 Locust St. in Oxford is joining the mix of retail and dining tenants at 50,000-square-foot mixed use development Bishop Square, one that already includes Dunkin’, a Sprint retail store and a bank, according to Joshua Rothstein, of OnSite Retail Group, which handles marketing and leasing for Bishop Square.

The popular nationwide chain will move into the location in fall and shutter the location at College Corner, according to Charlotte Markovich, marketing and finance director for Glass Family Pizza, a 26-store franchisee of Domino's established in 1996 with locations throughout the Greater Cincinnati area, including Northern Kentucky.

Rothstein said Domino’s offers Bishop Square dining options with “incredible name recognition” and top delivery track record.

“Domino’s, as soon as they heard that the space was available, they immediately pounced on it and locked it up within days,” he said.

Markovich said the new Domino’s offers a better location in the middle of town inside a newer building.

She said staffing is expected to remain at the same levels, although the franchise is always hiring.

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