Say Cheese Pizza Cafe opens in Melville
Melville's Say Cheese Pizza Cafe will offer both Roman- and New York-style pizza. Credit: Newsday/Melissa Azofeifa
Melville's dining scene is getting a cheesy new addition: Say Cheese Pizza Cafe is taking over the former Ruland Road Deli.
Owner Rosario Asta has been renovating the space for the past year and plans to open May 27, he said. The pizzeria will serve New York- and Roman-style pies and slices. "It’s a different process of making the dough," chef and manager Angelo Amato said of the latter. "We want to be as authentic as we can."
Other lunch and dinner items on the menu include sandwiches served on schiacciata (Italian flatbread) and Italian American dishes, Amato said. Early visitors can order breakfast staples such as build-your-own pancakes and waffle stacks, and coffee from Stony Brook- and Farmingdale-based specialty roaster Georgio’s Coffee.
Inside, a wooden pizza peel chandelier hangs at the entrance. A Nintendo Super Mario mural covers a wall next to a life-size Vespa, and a small Ferrari model hangs on another wall. The restaurant will also have its own mascot, Mr. Cheesy, who’ll be making weekend appearances.
"Everything is about the kids," Asta said. "They like to see things that you interact with, colorful stuff."
Say Cheese Pizza Cafe, 89 Ruland Rd., Melville, saycheesepizzacafe.com, 631-270-4492. Open for breakfast 7 to 11 a.m. Monday to Friday (possibly on Sundays if there is enough demand). Open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Friday and 12 to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Melissa Azofeifa is a restaurants reporter with Newsday's FeedMe team. Having grown up on Long Island, she loves talking about food and its impact on culture. A graduate of Stony Brook University, she joined Newsday in the fall of 2024.
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