Year-old pizza pop-up becomes a brick-and-mortar shop at 3001 W Clay St
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Overview
Updated 1 hour agoMax Sayer and Jacky Welch spent nearly a decade talking about opening a pizza shop. On Aug 21, they opened Pizzeria Delores in Richmond's Scott's Addition—11 days after Virginia's alcohol authority issued the restaurant license that cleared them to serve beer, wine, and cocktails.
The shop is a bet that a nostalgia-driven, counter-service Sicilian slice joint can hold its own on a corner that previously housed two ice cream shops that didn't last.
Why it matters
A new independent pizzeria bets that counter-service nostalgia can stick on a Scott's Addition corner that has churned through tenants.
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Sicilian-style counter-service pizza shop opened by two friends after a year as a pop-up.
The state agency that licenses and regulates alcohol sales in Virginia.
Timeline
July 2025 September 2026
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BizSense reports opening, notes expansion plans
Latest CoverageRichmond BizSense confirms the opening and quotes the founders saying they plan to expand operating hours once able.
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Pizzeria Delores opens its doors
OpeningThe Sicilian-style shop opens in Scott's Addition with a staff of about 11, serving $21-to-$35 pies with house-made ranch.
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Virginia ABC issues restaurant license
RegulatoryThe Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority clears Pizzeria Delores to serve alcohol, satisfying the final regulatory hurdle before opening.
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Duo leases the corner storefront
BusinessSayer and Welch lease the roughly 1,000-square-foot space at 3001 W Clay St, formerly home to ice cream shops King of Pops and Charm School.
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Pizzeria Delores debuts as a pop-up
LaunchSayer and Welch sell over 100 pies at Susie's Delicatessen, with a line stretching out the door.
Historical Context
2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
Pizzeria Mungo opens in Scott's Addition (2025)
Pizzeria Mungo opened on Arthur Ashe Boulevard in 2025, one of a wave of new restaurants in Scott's Addition. The neighborhood has been converting from light industrial to food, drink, and residential use.
Added another independent pizza option in the neighborhood a year before Pizzeria Delores opened.
Showed the neighborhood can support multiple pizzerias at once.
Richmond BizSense reports Pizzeria Delores is the second pizzeria to open in Scott's Addition in 2026, after a new Benny's location opened a few blocks over—a sign of a competitive but active local market.
The ice cream shops at 3001 W Clay St (2020s)
Before Pizzeria Delores, the corner storefront at 3001 W Clay St housed King of Pops and Charm School, two ice cream shops that each opened at the address and later closed. Both names are familiar in Richmond's food scene.
The space sat vacant until Sayer and Welch leased it in fall 2025.
The corner now has a dinner-focused tenant instead of daytime ice cream spots.
The building's turnover shows the location has not guaranteed success. The new pizzeria is the latest test of whether anything can stick there.
