It took almost two years, but a neighborhood pizza shop settled prominently at one corner of Norwood has finally reopened with nary a notice.

Over the summer, the owner of Nicky’s Pizza & Ristorante, Peter Deliaj, lifted the shutters to the 30-year-old pizza place once again following a lengthy top-down facelift.

“I couldn’t keep the store like it used to be,” Deliaj said, speaking to the Norwood News from the recently re-opened eatery. Its shuttered state became an accepted mark to Norwood’s small business district. It wasn’t hard to miss. After all, it rests at the ever-busy corner of Bainbridge Avenue and East 204th Street, a prime location and the envy for any merchant.  Since its entrance door is at the corner, this location has two official addresses: 280 E. 204th St., and 3070 Bainbridge Ave.

Inside, customers can expect a different look to the old joint. New white floor tiles blanket the business while elaborately designed custom-wood panels hug its perimeter, complementing the store’s eye-catching awning that bears the original store name. “Sometimes you buy the pizza because of the name,” Deliaj said. Traditional pizzeria fixtures remain, including paper-plate signs, a yay-high nose guard that protects fresh-out-of-the-oven pizza pies, and an industrial oven, only rejuvenated.

In a way, the makeover was one of necessity. Deliaj admits a fix was needed. Not to mention a scrubdown. Before renovations, vermin had become such a mainstay at the pizzeria that the previous owner would give away pizza should a tiny critter land on a slice, according to Deliaj. These days, the joint is spotless. The New York City Department of Health, which conducts health inspections, stopped by Nicky’s for an inspection in April and cleared them to open.

Deliaj, an amiable shopkeeper, took over the store in 2007 after the original owner, Vito Sacchetti, hung up his apron. Deliaj temporarily closed the place in 2014 to begin improvements. But he admits it was a slow go—carpenters needed to be replaced, and the winter, especially in 2015, was brutal enough to halt renovations.

“The other guy who I hired for this one was from New Jersey,” Deliaj said. “He didn’t come not full-time but some time.”

Perhaps the soft re-opening was motivated by Deliaj’s ongoing presence in Norwood. After all, just a few doors down rests his other pizza shop, Napoli’s, a frequent spot for anyone coming or going.

At Nicky’s, Deliaj notes “more and more people are coming” for traditional Italian fare that includes signature Eppy Rolls—dough that wraps a variety of meats and other ingredients—served until the “wee hours of the morning” as the menu suggests.

“More and more people are coming,” Deliaj said. “Otherwise who likes to see a roach. You cannot eat a slice. You’ll throw it in the garbage. And I’d do the same.”