Fazoli's Italian restaurant on North Davis in Pensacola closes

An Italian-American fast-food casual restaurant on North Davis Highway in Pensacola has ceased operations.

Fazoli's, a chain restaurant based out of Lexington, Kentucky, closed down Wednesday night, according to Gavin Cowan, a manager at the 7210 N. Davis Highway location at the time of its closing.

"The owners chose not to renew their contract with Fazoli's," Cowan said.

The building is owned by Kirby and Donna Smith, according to records from the Escambia County Property Appraiser's website. The site lists the Smiths' place of residence as Middlesboro, Kentucky.

In 2004, Fazoli's was ravaged by Hurricane Ivan. Its roof was ripped off and the restaurant's interior was severely damaged, according to News Journal archives. Despite that, and with the support of its 25 employees, the restaurant remained open while under repair.

"We had a plastic tarp and every time it rained outside, it rained in the dining room," said owner Kirby Smith in a 2005 interview with the News Journal. "It was hard, but everyone here was very supportive, and I'm glad we were able to stay open ..."

Jake Newby can be reached at jnewby@pnj.com or 850-435-8538.