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Bro’s Dough Pizzeria fulfills friends’ dream to open business in Hartford

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Three longtime friends who attended Bulkeley High School together are now in business, as the co-owners of Bro’s Dough Pizzeria in Hartford. Their restaurant is now open at 448 New Britain Ave. for takeout and delivery.

Adrian Bakrina, Walden St. Juste, and George Lys celebrated the grand opening of Bro’s on Aug. 8. The pizzeria features both full pies and pizza by the slice, in addition to appetizers, wings in seven different flavors and dry rubs, calzones, wraps and pressed sandwiches.

The friends first got together to brainstorm during the pandemic, discussing ways they might be able to start a business together. Lys is the experienced pizza maker, with more than 10 years of experience working for Joey Garlic’s. When the “bros,” as St. Juste describes them, decided to open the pizzeria, they made a variety of pies and invited friends over to taste-test.

Their friends asked “the pizza is great, where did you get it from?” St. Juste said. “And we told them, ‘You’re going to be getting it at Bro’s Dough very shortly.”

Though Lys has pizzeria experience, the restaurant business is new for two of the owners. St. Juste is a former college basketball player turned coach and runs Connecticut Scholars, a nonprofit youth basketball organization. Bakrina is a Hartford firefighter.

St. Juste described Bro’s pizza style as New York-style thin crust, with hand-stretched dough and quality ingredients. Pizzas range from $8.95 to $19.95, including classic cheese, pepperoni, and specialty red and white pies. The “Garden of Eves” piles on the veggies, with green pepper, roasted red pepper, spinach, broccoli, artichoke and fresh garlic, and a “McPizza” features mozzarella, hamburger, diced onions, pickles, cheddar and Bro’s Dough special sauce.

St. James said the “Bro Specials” meal packages ($25 to $35.95) with two pizzas, wings, soda and extras like mozzarella sticks and salad, have been early favorites for families. The restaurant is doing its own delivery at the moment, but will be partnering with services like DoorDash and UberEats.

Bro’s Dough is open Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. 860-206-7125, bros-dough-pizzeria.business.site.

Leeanne Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@courant.com.