“Hot Chicken” Expected to Replace Blaze Pizza in Vestal

A Vestal pizza shop that generated some buzz when it opened six years ago has gone out of business.

Blaze Pizza at 3714 Vestal Parkway East opened in April 2018. The franchised location was run by NYVA Restaurant Group of Queens.

Operator Melvin Quintanilla told WNBF News the pizza shop closed at the end of business on Saturday evening. He said the business had about 20 employees.

Quintanilla said the restaurant was shut down because the operation was unsustainable. He said the place was "bleeding money" so the decision was made to close.

The Blaze Pizza joint was located on the site of one of Broome County's first McDonald's fast food restaurants. Several other businesses have operated at the location in recent decades.

A big attraction for Blaze Pizza was the restaurant's approach of making pizzas to order for individual customers. Quintanilla said the concept was labor-intensive which made it difficult to have adequate staffing.

While the Blaze Pizza concept didn't work near the Binghamton University campus in Vestal, someone is preparing to offer something different at the site.

News 34 reports a Dave's Hot Chicken shack is planned for the location and it could open in March.

Quintanilla said he wouldn't be involved in operating the next restaurant, so he was unable to comment on whether it will be Dave's Hot Chicken. But he said he expected the goal would be to have the next eatery in operation before students leave town next spring.

As workers removed equipment from the closed Blaze Pizza, a large van bearing the colorful markings of Dave's Hot Chicken was parked behind the building.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.