Ainsley Thiem and her brother Hagan participate in a Gino's tradition of writing on the walls at Gino's East in Arlington. (Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor)

I took a believe-it-when-I-see-it approach to Gino's East's expansion into Dallas-Fort Worth. After all, the legendary deep-dish pizza place has been in Chicago and Chicago only for 49 years.

An Austin restaurateur bought the rights to franchise Gino's to Texas recently, and it made a seemingly quick leap to the Lone Star State. North Texas' first Gino's opened Monday, May 4, just after lunch. It's the fourth Gino's in Texas so far.

Many more Gino's are planned for D-FW and beyond. That should make Chicago folks mighty happy.

Photo gallery: Look inside Gino's, located in Arlington near Interstate 30:

1 / 20The restaurant serves specialty deep dish pizza, thin crust, salads and sandwiches at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 2 / 20Guests can build their own pizzas choosing from various cheeses, sauces, veggies and meats at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 3 / 20Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria is located at 1350 E. Copeland Road in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 4 / 20Guests can order for carry out or purchase a frozen pizza to go at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 5 / 20The restaurant used to be a Bikinis sports bar. My, how it's changed!(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 6 / 20The bar features many craft beers on tap, including Chicago's Goose Island brews and local Texas beers.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 7 / 20The Chicago Fire features hot and spicy sausage, fire roasted red peppers and red onions at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 8 / 20Gino's has arrived.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 9 / 20A server slices a piece of deep dish pepperoni pizza for a customer at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 10 / 20Is that a Cowboys star up there?(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 11 / 20The Chicago Fire features hot and spicy sausage, fire roasted red peppers and red onions at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 12 / 20The restaurant serves specialty deep dish pizza, thin crust, salads, and sandwiches at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 13 / 20Be prepared to wait at least 45 minutes for a pizza. It takes a long time to cook deep dish.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 14 / 20"Everything's bigger in Texas," says a sign at Gino's.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 15 / 20Gino's already had plenty of customers in its first hour open.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 16 / 20The pepperoni pizza at Gino's(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 17 / 20Ainsley Thiem and her brother Hagan participate in a Gino's tradition of writing on the walls at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 18 / 20A build your own pizza features pepperoni, red onion, and spinach at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 19 / 20Guests write on the walls at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor) 20 / 20The spinach margarita pizza features spinach, tomatoes, basil, and bufala mozzarella at Gino's East Chicago Pizzeria in Arlington.(Alexandra Olivia / Special Contributor)

350 E. Copeland Road, Arlington (on the frontage road of Interstate 30, near N. Collins St.). ginoseast.com. Abbreviated hours on opening days: 2-10 p.m. May 4 and 5. Regular hours begin May 6: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. every Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.

Follow Sarah Blaskovich on Twitter at @sblaskovich.