Sbarro

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Sbarro ("Sbarro – The Italian Eatery") is a national chain of shopping-mall food-court counters from New York that sells pizza by the slice. It came to Madison in 1987 with the food court at West Towne Mall, and opened a second counter at East Towne Mall in 1989.

History

  • November 1987: a want ad announces the grand opening of "Sbarro, The Italian Eatery" at West Towne Mall and asks for cooks, pizza makers, servers, cashiers and utility workers; applicants are sent to the mall information booth[1].
  • December 1987: the State Journal reviews Towne Park, the mall's new food court of five counters: Cinnabon, Sbarro, Taco Bell, Blommer's Ice Cream and Mike's Subs[2].
  • October 1989: Sbarro, then at 120 West Towne Mall, advertises for co-managers and entry-level managers[3]. Later that month a want ad announces the grand opening at East Towne Mall; applicants are told to go to the mall, next to the Life Uniform Shop[4].
  • January 2005: a Capital Times list of restaurant inspections gives the East Towne store as "Sbarro's Italian Eatery, 219 East Towne Mall"[5].
  • April 2011: the company, by then based in Melville, N.Y., files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to cut about $200 million of debt[6].
  • 2019–2021: Sbarro's store locator lists both Madison counters, East Towne at 89 E. Towne Mall and "West Town" at 66 West Town Mall[7][8].
  • By December 2025: the East Towne page of the locator redirects to the list of locations, so that store has closed[9].
  • 2026: the West Towne counter is still listed[8].

Pizza

In 1987 the supreme pizza was $1.79 for "a large wedge". The reviewer found it soggy from the heat lamps. The counter also sold calzones and lasagna[2].

Trivia

  • In 2018 Samara Kalk Derby wrote that Pots-N-Tots stood out in the West Towne food court from "places like Sbarro, Subway and Steak Escape"[10].
  • On Black Friday 2024, shoppers in the West Towne food court were still eating "slices of pizza from Sbarro"[11].

Locations

  • West Towne Mall food court: from November 1987, still open in 2026. The address was 120 West Towne Mall in 1989[3] and 66 West Town Mall by 2019[8].
  • East Towne Mall: from late 1989 until sometime between December 2021 and December 2025. The address was 219 East Towne Mall in 2005[5] and 89 E. Towne Mall by 2019[7].

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ (1987, November 10). Classified: "Grand opening … Madison West Towne Mall, Sbarro, The Italian Eatery" hiring cooks/pizza makers, line servers/cashiers and utility workers; apply at the mall information booth. Wisconsin State Journal. p. 25. Newspapers.com image 400706146.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 (1987, December 13). "Cinnabon rolls out a winner." Wisconsin State Journal. p. 111. Newspapers.com image 400697864.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 (1989, October 3). Classified: Sbarro, the Italian Eatery, hiring co-managers and entry-level managers, cooks/pizza makers and cashiers; apply at Sbarro, 120 West Towne Mall. Wisconsin State Journal. p. 24. Newspapers.com image 397236350.
  4. ↑ (1989, October 22). Classified: "Grand opening … East Towne Mall: Sbarro, the Italian Eatery is now accepting applications" for cooks/pizza makers, servers/cashiers and utility/bus persons; apply at East Towne Mall next to Life Uniform Shop. Wisconsin State Journal. p. 41. Newspapers.com image 397101068.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 (2005, January 8). Restaurants cited for health violations in 2004: Falbo Brother's Pizzeria 408 S. Park St., Rosati's Pizza 4933 Commercial Ave., Ian's 319 N. Frances St. The Capital Times. p. 5. Newspapers.com image 525980261.
  6. ↑ (2011, April 5). "Sbarro chain files for reorganization." Wisconsin State Journal. p. 29. Newspapers.com image 523118404.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Sbarro Pizza at East Towne." sbarro.com. Internet Archive capture of August 23, 2019: archived copy. Retrieved October 29, 2026.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Sbarro Pizza at West Town." sbarro.com. Internet Archive capture of July 11, 2026: archived copy. Retrieved October 29, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Sbarro locations." sbarro.com. Internet Archive capture of December 8, 2025: archived copy. Retrieved October 29, 2026.
  10. ↑ Kalk Derby, S. (2018, September 23). "Pots-N-Tots livens up West Towne food court." Wisconsin State Journal. p. E5. Newspapers.com image 490423352.
  11. ↑ Adams, B. (2024, November 30). "2 Madison locations emblematic of retail evolution, diversity." Wisconsin State Journal. p. A1. Newspapers.com image 1146299413.
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