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Screens Still Dark As A Ventura County Movie Theater Pivots To Operate As Restaurant

(Studio Movie Grill photo)
A Studio Movie Grill 540 pizza

Even though an upscale Ventura County movie theater still can’t show movies because of COVID-19 safety concerns, it’s serving up something different these days, in the form of pizzas and calzones.  The Studio Movie Grill in Simi Valley has adapted to the pandemic by operating as a restaurant.

Stephanie Pelka is General Manager of the theater, which is at the Simi Valley Town Center.  The theater has a full kitchen, bar and an outdoor dining area, which allows it to function as a restaurant.  She says before the pandemic, they would often joke that they were a restaurant which also happened to show movies.

It's new 540 Pizza and Calzone brand is unique in that it’s a movie theater offering takeout food.  Pelka says they’re happy to keep some employees on the job when movie theaters are closed.   

Studio Movie Grill: www.studiomoviegrill.com/menu/simi-valley

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.