Local pizza chain bought out by Colorado company

Carmela's Pizzeria — which operates restaurants in Centerville, Springboro and New Carlisle, and will soon open a fourth location in Brookville — has been acquired by the publicly traded Greenfield Farms Food Inc.

The acquisition closed earlier this month, according to a Greenfield Farms Food news release issued this week. Carmela’s is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Greenfield.

“We are confident in the Carmela’s Pizza restaurant concept and the solid base we have built with our (Dayton-area) locations,” newly appointed Greenfield CEO and Carmela’s Chairman Ron Heineman said in a news release. “We believe this transaction is the springboard we need to grow the Carmela’s brand and create shareholder value for the Greenfield stockholders.”

Heineman could not be reached Thursday to elaborate on the acquisition.

Carmela’s offers a full service menu specializing in New York-style pizza for dine-in, carryout and delivery, as well as pizza buffets in some locations. Greenfield Farms Food, Inc. is a publicly-traded producer and marketer of grass-fed beef supplying a North Carolina-based grocer.

Carmela’s Pizzeria’s newest location will be at 302 Market St. in Brookville. Darren Dulsky, a Centerville resident who founded Carmela’s in 2004, told the Dayton Daily News in August that the Carmela’s restaurant concept “started with the first store in Brookville, and we are excited to be returning to the community.”

The new restaurant will employ about 15 people. The seating capacity will be nearly 100, Dulsky said. A community room for private parties and business meetings will be available.

Dulsky said in August that the merger-acquisition with Greenfield will likely lead to the expansion of Carmela’s into other markets outside southwest Ohio.

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