New ice cream shop, pizza bar in downtown Wheaton
A new pizza bar and ice cream shop have opened in downtown Wheaton, giving visitors two places to enjoy dinner and a sweet treat.
Hand-formed dough, house-made mozzarella and charred edges are the base for every pizza at Gia Mia Pizza Bar, which opened at 106 N. Hale St.
“It's kind of a Southern Italian meets California-style pizza,” said owner Brian Goewey, who also has served as co-owner and chef of the fire+wine restaurant in Glen Ellyn.
A red-tiled brick oven is the center of attention in the restaurant, which has a modern look, with exposed brick wall and wood accents.
“It's Chicago, it's downtown, in the suburbs,” Goewey said. “Someone compared us to Wheaton's version of Eataly, which is pretty cool.”
Besides unique pizzas, such as pancetta with arugula, clam and bacon and a prosciutto pie, the restaurant offers pastas and “farm to fork” salads, small plates and vegetables.
“Everything has a well-thought out, yet super balanced flavor,” Goewey said.
Gia Mia is open 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 4 to 11 p.m. Friday; and 3 to 11 p.m. Saturday. There are plans to open the restaurant for lunch hours starting in June.
A few blocks away, Kimmer's Ice Cream opened last week, filling a space at 109 E. Front St. left vacant by Tate's Ice Cream.
This is the second Kimmer's Ice Cream location. Owner Kimberly Elam opened her first shop in 2010 in downtown St. Charles.
Elam said the pink facade of Tate's always caught her eye whenever she rode the train through Wheaton, so when she heard it was for sale, she knew it was “an opportunity that I didn't think I should pass up.”
There are more than 20 homemade flavors at the shop, some classic and other more gourmet, like Aztec hot chocolate, coffee and doughnuts and red velvet cake. Customers also can purchase ice cream cakes, pies and pints.
“Our ice cream is made with love,” Elam said. “It's very dense and creamy and we use a lot of additives, like cookie dough, chocolate chips.”
Business has been good so far and Elam said she hopes people keep coming back because of the quality ice cream and customer service.
“We're really excited to be here,” she said. “We really try to make an effort to make sure all our customers leave happier than when they came in.”
The shop's summer hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. A grand opening celebration is scheduled for the week of June 10 through 14.