Two or three years after he opened his namesake Chicago-style pizzeria in 1998, Anthony "Rocco" DiGrazia knew he needed more space.
“We’ve been too small for a long, long time. We are in our own way," he said on Thursday, days before he plans to close the original location of his 26-year-old Rocco's Little Chicago Pizzeria and move to a space nearly three times as big and just a few hundred yards down East Broadway. "If we are busy in the summer, that means we can't even approach the amount of business we can accommodate in the busy tourist season."
DiGrazia is expected to close the original location at 2707 E. Broadway at the end of business Sunday, Oct. 6, and hopes to reopen as early as Oct. 21 in the Sol Block, 2555 E. Broadway, which is part of the Rio Nuevo Sunshine Mile redevelopment area.
Rocco’s Little Chicago Pizzeria is taking much of the decor from its original location to its new home.
The new location is in the former Solot Plaza, which was built in the 1950s by Benjamin Solot to house his real estate business. The building housed retail ventures for years until the city acquired the plaza as part of its expansive Broadway widening project in 2020.
The city deeded to Rio Nuevo the plaza and 38 midcentury residential and commercial properties along the so-called Sunshine Mile that were abandoned due to the road widening project.
"The whole Broadway thing could have been Grant Road. The city had no intention of using these buildings," said Rio Nuevo Chairman Fletcher McCusker.
Two years ago, Rio Nuevo tapped Larsen Baker to develop Sol Block, which includes 16 properties between Tucson Boulevard and Treat Avenue. Rio Nuevo pumped $1.2 million into the project and McCusker said Larsen Baker likely invested $5 million.
"It's quite remarkable what they've done," McCusker said of the developer, noting that the project is 100% leased. "They just set a whole new bar for renovating these old dilapidated buildings."
A pedestrian passes by Rocco’s Little Chicago’s new location on the Sol Block, 2555 E. Broadway, on Oct. 3.
Rocco's was the first tenant signed onto the Sol Block; since then, the plaza has signed leases with several other local ventures including Decibel Coffee Works, Studio Hair Artistry by K & Co., Quisty’s Gourmet Salads and Sandwiches and The Broadway Beer and Wine Bar from the folks behind Caps & Corks.
When DiGrazia signed onto the project in 2019, his initial plan was to take up 6,000 square feet, but that footprint was cut roughly in half.
Workers already have been assembling furniture and some kitchen equipment in the new location, which DiGrazia said will include all of the wall decorations from the original restaurant — the black-and-white photographs, city street signs, sports memorabilia and a large flag from Chicago among them.
“I have a bunch of stuff in my shed that I’m gonna put on," he added, including old style neon signs, beer signs from Chicago brews and a second 1960s Harmony guitar, crafted in Chicago.
DiGrazia said he will take his double-stack ovens and large mixer with him to the new location, as well as one of his deep fryers; he's adding two more.
What's not coming is the iconic monument sign in front of 2707 E. Broadway, where DiGrazia for years posted sometimes encouraging, often sarcastic and always entertaining messages to those driving along the busy Broadway corridor: "100 degrees warmer than real Chicago;" "There's no such thing as a boneless wing;" "Disappointing New Yorkers since 1998;" "At least we're not in Phoenix;" "New York's alright if u don't like pizza;" "Mon sooner than later;" "Chicago food without the weather;" "Livin' that leftover life;" and "Cheesier than your dads jokes."
"I am taking the face of (the sign) and putting it in my new location inside," he said, adding that he can't put a sign outside because of the building's historic designation.
Lunchtime customers dine at the original Rocco’s Little Chicago days before it closes for a move about 200 yards away.
DiGrazia opened his restaurant several years after leaving his native Chicago and moving to Tucson with a girlfriend who was studying at the University of Arizona. DiGrazia, who has an anthropology degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, took a few classes then ended up working in several Tucson-area restaurants including Caruso's Italian on North Fourth Avenue and Terra Cotta Cafe in the Foothills.
At the time, there was just one other Tucson pizzeria: Zachary's on East Sixth Street near the UA, making Chicago-style pizza.
"I wanted to serve the community pizza that I wanted to buy and to have a restaurant I wanted to go to work in," DiGrazia said.
It didn't take long after opening for Rocco's to build up a loyal following, some of whom are upset that the restaurant will be closed during the move.
"We have people who are freaking out now because they come in legitimately three times a week," DiGrazia said. "They're like, 'I don't know what to do.'"
Get the latest on the move by following Rocco's on Facebook.
