A restaurant that served Italian cuisine for more than three decades in Verona has closed.
According to a message on the Verona Village Inn's website, “We have lost our lease for available parking and will not be able to operate as a viable restaurant.”
Owner Eric DiIanni did not return messages seeking comment.
The restaurant's website post thanked people for their longtime support and said to “look for us at a new location in the not too distant future.”
Customers can get refunds on outstanding gift cards by mailing them by Feb. 3 to the restaurant, 551 Wildwood Ave., Verona, PA 15147.
Numerous comments about the Village Inn's closing have appeared on social media platforms with many people sharing their experiences at the Italian restaurant and questioning what happened between the inn and the neighboring Pittsburgh Pickle Co.
Pickle company co-owner John Patterson of Penn Hills said last week his company wasn't involved with the Village Inn's decision to close.
“There was never any lease agreement,” Patterson said. “We were willing to rent the space to them.”
The building and a lot that the Village Inn used is owned by Beth Ann DeLibero, according to the Allegheny County Real Estate website.
Patterson said he and his brothers, Joe Robl and Will Patterson, purchased a neighboring building and lot from the DeLibero family in November so they could expand their business, and attempted to negotiate a deal with DiIanni to use refrigeration equipment in the building and space in the lot.
“We were willing to work with a company we had no obligation to work with,” John Patterson said.
“All we want to do is make pickles. For all this other mess is a shame.”
Michael DiVittorio is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-871-2367 or mdivittorio@tribweb.com.
