ESCANABA — Andrew Crispigna, owner and CEO of Crispigna’s Foods, LLC. (Crispignas.com) announced his authentic, homemade, casual Crispigna’s Italian Restaurant has entered the expansion arena. Crispigna’s, which opened its doors in 1972, when it was founded by Andy’s father, Joe Crispigna, in downtown Escanaba, has been uniquely positioned to purchase the building next door to its current location at 1213 Ludington St. This expansion will allow for a bigger kitchen, more seating, an in-house market and deli (where you can purchase the Crispigna family’s homemade sauces, dressings, specialty meats, etc.) and a brick oven for pizza.

During the construction process, Crispigna’s will temporarily be closed during lunchtime, effective Monday, May 14. However, they will still be open for dinner, seven days a week, from 4 until 9 p.m. and you can still purchase their homemade sauces to-go. All of their food, including pasta, pizza, soups, sandwiches, and salads will still be available to take home to eat. You can order online at Crispignas.com. Crispigna’s will continue to cater events such as weddings, special parties, and business functions.

The Crispigna family’s legacy of food purveyors and restaurant owners has shaped their food recipes over the years. They have been using most of their recipes since 1972 and will continue to do so during and after the deli expansion and remodel of their current restaurant, a press release stated.

“While planning the construction of the new and improved Crispigna’s Restaurant and adding the deli and wood-fire pizza oven certainly has been a labor of love, I’ve always brought an analytical eye to the process, and a vision for Crispigna’s to evolve with the times, while staying true to our homemade recipes. We’ve held back on expansion for years in order to prove our concept and work through every aspect of our business,” said Andy Crispigna. “What’s exciting for everyone is that Crispigna’s hasn’t even begun to tap into what’s possible using Italian ingredients and food traditions. Not to mention the entire environment will be updated for an over-all fine dining experience.”