GONDOLA PIZZA RESTAURANT FORCED TO CLOSE AFTER 53 YEARS OPERATING ON S. JEFFERSON IN COOKEVILLE

NewsTalk 94.1

Cookeville’s Gondola’s Pizza House has closed after being in business since 1968.

Lambros and Helen Lainos have operated the Italian restaurant for the past five years. Helen Lainos said COVID did play a role, but the deciding factor was changes to the Jefferson Avenue location.

“There is a road being widened. We are going to lose six parking spaces,” Lainos said. “We have an old building. We own the business. We don’t own the building. The owners of the building, the original owner passed away. His children wanted to double our rent. Cost prohibited for what we are trying to do.”

The T-DOT widening project is estimated to take about 2 years to complete and stretches from Walmart to Bunker Hill Road. Lainos said support for the business was there but going take out only during the COVID shut down was also a financial hit.  FULL STORY HERE