Colony Grill Development LLC has announced two new Connecticut restaurants — in Newington and South Windsor — both slated to open in 2027, extending the Colony Grill brand's push through Hartford County ahead of an imminent Glastonbury debut.
The disclosures mark the chain's most concentrated geographic cluster since it expanded beyond its Stamford roots. Founded in 1935, Colony Grill operates locations across Connecticut, New York, Virginia, and Florida, trading on a thin-crust, bar-style pizza format and a signature Hot Oil topping that have built a loyal regional following over nine decades.
The New Footprints
The Newington restaurant, at 3260 Berlin Turnpike, will seat more than 175 guests and include a large patio, a full bar with twelve tap lines, and the brand's first-ever dedicated private dining room — a format shift that opens incremental revenue from corporate outings, team dinners, and milestone events. "The private dining room gives us a dedicated space to host milestone celebrations, corporate outings, and group dinners while delivering the same great pizza and hospitality that define the Colony Grill experience," said Ken Martin, COO and co-owner of Colony Grill.
The South Windsor unit, at 255 Gateway Blvd., anchors the dining portion of Buckland Gateway, a mixed-use development combining retail, dining, and community space. The restaurant will seat approximately 150 guests, carry the same twelve-tap bar configuration, and offer patio seating designed to capture foot traffic from nearby residents, office workers, and retail visitors. Phoebe Sager, Principal of Sager Development, described Colony Grill as "exactly the kind of tenant we envisioned for the project — a great Connecticut brand with an incredibly loyal following."
What the Expansion Signals
The dual-site announcement reflects a deliberate geographic densification strategy rather than the scattered multi-state footprint common among emerging fast-casual chains. By clustering multiple Hartford County openings within a single announcement cycle — Glastonbury, Newington, and South Windsor — Colony Grill is effectively building a regional hub that can share marketing spend, management oversight, and supply-chain logistics. That approach mirrors tactics employed by other regional pizza operators that have prioritized depth in core markets before broadening their national reach.
For the broader casual-dining and pizza segment, the move underscores sustained consumer appetite for differentiated, experience-driven concepts at a time when value-oriented chains are competing aggressively on price. Colony Grill's bar-forward format — twelve tap lines, sports viewing, private event capability — positions each location as a recurring-visit destination rather than a transactional meal stop, a distinction increasingly important to landlords and mixed-use retail developers seeking anchor tenants that generate dwell time.
Paul Coniglio, CEO and co-owner, framed the expansion in community-integration terms: "Newington and South Windsor have that same strong sense of local pride, and we're excited not just to open restaurants there, but to become part of the fabric of both towns."
No financial terms, construction costs, or franchise arrangements were disclosed.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
