By Mary Thurwachter
It looked like curtains for Lantana Pizza when it shuttered at 467 Greynolds Circle in April. Dino and Fatime Ismajli, who ran the popular eatery there for 27 years, thanked loyal customers and said it was time to retire.
But it appears the restaurant — where Town Council members frequently gathered after meetings at Town Hall across the street — will be back for a second act in a new location.
News of Lantana Pizza’s reemergence became clear on Sept. 17 when the council held a meeting to consider a special exception to its code allowing the property owners, Lantana Partners, LLC, to make renovations, paving the way for the restaurant to move in.
The request included renovations and modifications to the exterior facade of the building at 618 W. Lantana Road, which was home to Pearl’s Next Generation Restaurant for 51 years until the restaurant closed in 2016. More recently, Lantana Tavern operated there from May 2023 through July 2026.
“The building footprint and overall square footage will remain unchanged,” said Development Services Director Nicole Dritz. “The application was submitted because of a proposed change in tenancy and is intended to establish the new tenant’s use of the property. Existing access points, parking areas, and operational characteristics will remain unchanged.”
Inside, the restrooms will be rebuilt for ADA compliance.
Neighbors of the Lantana Road property expressed concerns about late night noise, but the special exception is contingent on the restaurant’s closing its kitchen at 11 p.m. And Dino Ismajli said his pizza place was a restaurant, not a bar, although drinks are served.
The strip mall on Greynolds Circle where the pizza place had been located was next to a former Kmart and is set to be razed to make way for a planned mixed-use development, Lantana Village, which will bring 426 apartments to the corner of Dixie Highway and Hypoluxo Road.
Originally when they learned they would need to move the business, the Ismajlis planned to move to another location in the development, But they later changed their minds and decided to close on April 4.
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