Pizza Chain Via Moto to Join Metreon and Westfield

The Via Moto in San Diego's Westfield UTC mall. [Photo: Facebook]

The new buildout of the Metreon is nearly complete, with La Boulange, Chipotle, Split Bread, Super Duper Burger, Cako, Creperie Saint-Germain, and Freshroll all snagging spots in the new development that also brought SF its first Target. But there are still a couple of unoccupied spaces in the interior food court, and we've learned that one of those will be going to Via Moto, a chain specializing in made-to-order artisan pizzas, pastas, panini, and salads. "You can build your own pizza or choose one off our classic menu," says Michael Pirraglia of Moto Restaurants, which owns the Via Moto chain. (Pirraglia's family also owns Novato's Tavola Italian Kitchen, as well as a couple of other restaurants on the East Coast.)

Via Moto, which is entirely corporate-owned (i.e. not a franchise), is a sister restaurant of Pasta Moto, which has been located in the food court of the neighboring Westfield mall since 2006. (There's also a Via Moto in the Westfield UTC mall in San Diego.) To correspond with the new opening, the Pasta Moto at the Westfield will be remodeled and rebranded as a Via Moto. The Metreon location won't have pasta, though Pirraglia says that he may add it later if there's sufficient demand.

For an idea of what will be on the menu at the new location, Pirraglia sent along the current menu for Via Moto's San Diego location, which is viewable here. He says the Metreon location's menu will be much the same, save for the pasta. The opening of the Metreon spot is planned for sometime in the next few weeks, with the Westfield renovation to follow over the course of the spring.

· Via Moto Metreon [Facebook page]