Bradenton's Joey D's Pizza expands to Sarasota

Joey D's Chicago Style Eatery & Pizzeria offer customers favorites like their Monsters of the Midway pizza, Cheesy Beef sub, Chilli-Cheese Fries and "Chicago Style" hot dog at their location at Cortez Road and 14th Street in Bradenton. The restaurant is now expanding to Sarasota off of Bee Ridge Road and I-75. File photo by Brian Blanco/Bradenton Herald

Longtime Bradenton deep-dish pizzeria Joey D's Chicago Style Eatery is now tossing pies in Sarasota.

The restaurant has been here since 2004, on the corner of Cortez and West 14th Street, operated by Chicago natives Bob and Maria Dennis, and Bob's brother Tommy Dennis. The restaurant moved here in 2004 after 10 years in Minneapolis.

Now, the Bradenton favorite is expanding, and announced via Facebook on Wednesday that they were going to have a soft opening later that night at their new location at 3811 Kenny Drive, off of Bee Ridge Road beside Interstate 75. The Sarasota location is also owned by Terry Gutowski, a Sarasota resident and native of Wausau, Wisc.

Joey D's is one of my favorites for making me miss visiting one of my favorite cities, Chicago, and being a hockey-loving establishment. Oh, and the food is great, too.

They named the restaurant after their hockey playing son Joey, who battled a rare disease called Cockayne Syndrome until he passed away at age 32. The effects of the genetic disease cause difficulty gaining weight, short stature, premature aging and impaired nervous system. He was only expected to survive until he was 12, but fought on for another 20 years.

I'll update with more information in Monday's paper. Any Bradenton Joey D's fans going to check out the Sarasota location? Let me know, and if you have, drop me a note in the comments.