LaScala Restaurant Group

THIRTY-SOME YEARS LATER at the turn of the millennium, Rob LaScala, an entrepreneur since the age of 8, purchased the famed Apollo Pizza location with its secret recipe in tow. Before long, he had four “Best of Philly” titles and six Apollo pizzerias, and in 2005 a seventh Apollo location opened its doors as our first full-service restaurant. Located in Philadelphia on the corner of 7th & Chestnut Street, it was an instant success because of its large selection of homemade Italian American favorites, cozy full-service bar, and dedicated staff.

IT WAS SO WELL-RECEIVED  that we quite appropriately changed this location’s name to an Italian one—ours! LASCALA’S RESTAURANT & BAR was born, and the rest is history.

IN 2011 WE EXPANDED the brand with the opening of LASCALA’S PRONTO on Spring Garden Street, specializing in takeout and delivery service to offer our customers Italian-American Home-Style FAST in a family-friendly atmosphere.

IN 2016 WE BROADENED OUR REACH with the launch of LASCALA’S FIRE at The Promenade at Sagemore in Marlton, NJ. With its modern décor and open atmosphere, LASCALA’S FIRE brought a new flair to the group by specializing in wood-fired Italian cooking and adding new offerings to the list of LASCALA’S favorites.

LOCATED IN THE HEART OF SOUTH PHILADELPHIA on Passyunk Avenue, LASCALA’S BIRRA became the fourth brand to join the family in 2017. Formerly Birra, this location was rebranded to add a new dimension—creative pizza, artisan Italian, and world beers.

BY 2018, a second LASCALA’S BIRRA had made its mark on the scenic Cooper River in Pennsauken, NJ, and a second LASCALA’S FIRE became a lively addition to the Rowan University/Glassboro, NJ community.

TWO YEARS LATER, our second LASCALA’S PRONTO opened its doors in Medford, NJ, and quickly became a mainstay in the community with its friendly management and steadfast promise to always, no matter what, deliver pronto!

THE YEAR 2020 ALSO marked a very special, yet bittersweet, milestone for the LaScala Restaurant Group when we transformed our flagship restaurant, at 7th & Chestnut into Philadelphia’s first LASCALA’S FIRE! And while the world as we knew it was changing tremendously, the LaScala Restaurant Group kept its doors open and placed an important focus on saluting the amazing, tireless workers on the frontlines any time we could with complimentary pizza and Italian fare. To us, it’s always family over everything, and our community and our employees are an important part of our family. We applaud all those who worked on the frontlines and thank our managers and employees for hanging in there with us during the oddest year+ of all our lives.

IN EARLY 2021 we were thrilled to open LASCALA’S FIRE in beautiful Villanova on East Lancaster Avenue to rave reviews since our family and friends had been eagerly awaiting a FIRE in the suburbs. We were also pleased to announce that LASCALA’S PRONTO in Mt. Laurel, NJ moved back to its original LaScala Restaurant Group ownership, making this location at 4040 Dearborn Circle our 3rd PRONTO! And in October, our beloved FIRE customers in Philadelphia received a second haunt in the city of brotherly love, as a new LASCALA’S FIRE opened its doors to a cozy, new home at 3200 Chestnut Street in University City.

2022 WAS MARKED A BANNER YEAR with the flagship LASCALA’S FIRE in Marlton more than doubling in size and receiving its long-awaited liquor license to boot! And as folks were enjoying the enhanced vibe at The Promenade in Marlton, plans and construction were well underway for a second and larger CHEGG also in Marlton and a new Philly Metro Area FIRE in Upper Dublin. 

EARLY IN 2023, and after building from the ground up, THE CHICKEN OR THE EGG (CHEGG) in MARLTON, NJ opened in February in the Renaissance Square on Route 70 East. Serving breakfast, lunch, dinner, wings, anytime!, CHEGG MARLTON seats 675 people and offers a huge beer garden with seating around fire pits, two amazing bars, one inside and out, large flat screen TVs strategically placed for sport-watching enthusiasts, and so on and so on….it’s quite a destination! Additionally, the LaScala Restaurant Group was very pleased to announce that we’re now serving up our Italian-American fare in Dresher, PA—LaScala’s Fire Upper Dublin, opened its doors at The Promenade at 1135 Market Street in late March.

AS 2023 MOVED ON, our customers were able to join our family literally on the beach in Brigantine, NJ, at 1400 Ocean Avenue. LASCALA’S BEACH HOUSE opened its doors to a huge outside deck with sky blue canopies right smack on the sand and by the surf—complete with live music daily, drink selections galore served from the oversized wraparound outside bar, and corn hole in the sand. A couple months later, the sprawling, fully windowed inside portion of the restaurant opened with beautiful views, large cozy booths, an oversized bar with large flat screen TVs, and a continually expanding menu featuring favorites from across all our LaScala Restaurant Group restaurants.

ON MARCH 4TH, 2024, we were very happy to announce the opening of our 7th LASCALA’S FIRE at 3739 West Chester Pike in Newtown Square, PA—come visit us at this beautiful new location!

AND, ALONG THE WAY, IT HAS BEEN AND CONTINUES TO BE OUR PRIVILEGE to cook for our customers whenever they want to celebrate…anything! Our IN-HOUSE EVENTS & CATERING menus, across all our brands, are perfect for corporate events, anniversaries, birthday parties, bridal & baby showers, and everything in between, whether it be at our home or yours, our Italian American LaScala-style cuisine is sure to please. Let’s Eat!