Tonino’s Closes Its Doors

During lunchtime at Tonino’s on Thursday, there was no smell of freshly baked pizza or pasta, no chatter of locals on their lunch breaks. A sign taped inside the entrance in the back of the building simply read “Sorry Closed.”

The longtime Main Street restaurant had quietly closed its doors.

A block south on Main Street, two workers were fixing up Memphis on Main Street, which closed after a two-alarm fire on Sept. 16, 2011. They deferred comments to Jesse Issa, who owns Tonino’s and Memphis on Main Street, and was not available Thursday.

Local residents reacted to the news with mixed reviews. Some said they blame the economy, others didn't like the food and some were truly upset.

"This breaks my heart [because] in my opinion, there is absolutely nowhere in this town within a 10-mile radius to get good pizza, except Tonino's," said a Facebook user identifed as Andrea Quintano Wirts. "And they had the best salads, too." 

Several Patch readers said on the Owings Mills-Reisterstown Patch Facebook page that they heard that there was a plan was to move Tonino’s into the Memphis on Main Street building. There is no word from restaurant management confirming or denying that rumor.

Electrical permits listing the property owner as Issa Investment Inc. were taped to the doors on the back porch at Memphis on Main Street.

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