Though its owners hope to find a new location in the future, a Pleasant Gap restaurant is closing in August after eight years in business.
Little Mamma’s Pizza has set Aug. 8 for its last day at 105 S. Main St. Offering pizza, calzones, stromboli, sandwiches, pasta salads and appetizers, the family-owned restaurant has also become known for its community initiatives, including free lunches for kids in the summer and school supply drives.
“This isn’t a decision we ever wanted to make,” the Perez family, who own the restaurant wrote in a Facebook post, citing increasing costs and property issues as the reason for the closure.
According to the post, new ownership acquired the property on July 1, and Little Mamma’s owners hoped to have “a collaborative conversation and shared vision” with them for longstanding structural issues with the building, such as parking, the limitations of the indoor space and “outdated infrastructure.”
“We ran the numbers needed to match another immediate rent increase,” they wrote. “We explored every option—how to cut costs, maintain fair (liveable) wages for staff, and still provide the level of service you’ve come to expect. But in the end, we simply couldn’t justify staying in this space, especially with the limitations of the facility, and potential added costs on top of the routine maintenance that we’ve been obligated to take on since 2018.
“After many sleepless nights, hard conversations, and moments of self-blame for how this will impact our team and beloved community, we’ve made the difficult decision to step away, with our heads held high.”
Little Mamma’s will remain open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, “to make the most of our remaining inventory, help staff prepare financially, and support the added costs of closing,” the owners wrote.
As the final week approaches, the restaurant will have a reduced menu with oven and sandwich items only, based on supplies, and also plans to offer occasional tacos and homemade chips.
The family wrote that they are “hesitant” to ask for help, but encouraged customer support in the final weeks to assist with equipment storage and closing costs, and to support he restaurant staff.
“We’re committed to doing everything we can to make sure our staff is cared for, financially and emotionally, and that they don’t bear the brunt of this transition, and we’ll continue to support them however long we can keep payroll going till the end,” according to the post.
They added that while they are “grieving” the loss of their business’ home of eight years and what they might have been able to do there in the future, they are “grateful and proud” of the restaurant’s work and the community’s support.
“This isn’t goodbye forever,” they wrote. “It’s a pause. A chance to breathe, regroup, and make delicious quality food for our fan base with a final hoorah mentality. We hope, when the time is right, to return in a new space—still rooted in the same passion, quality, and purpose that built Little Mamma’s from day one.”
