It’s been just a few months since Nina’s Custard stand in Getzville closed after 35 years in operation, and now developer Jonathan Bevilacqua has a new plan in store for the Millersport Highway site: a coffee shop.
Former Nina’s Custard in Amherst to become… a coffee shop
But first he needs to be able to add a drive-thru to the building. And that requires a rezoning.
Bevilacqua Development is asking the Amherst Planning Board to rezone the 1.4-acre site at 2577 Millersport from “neighborhood business” to “general business” because the current classification doesn’t allow for a drive-thru.
That’s essential for the company’s business plan for a new quick-service restaurant that can “serve customers rapidly during peak morning hours,” according to Bevilacqua’s application.
“It would be extremely difficult for any operator to successfully run a restaurant at this location without a drive-thru facility,” longtime Nina’s owner Anthony J. Scioli III wrote in a letter of support. “Looking back, I regret not incorporating a drive-thru when I originally built the restaurant, as it would have allowed us to remain competitive with newer establishments along Millersport Highway,” including a Burger King at 2515 Millersport, less than 500 feet away, and Tim Hortons down the street at 2290 Millersport Highway.
“The trend in the food service industry has shifted away from dine-in options for fast-casual restaurants, as many families are often on the go and prefer the convenience of drive-thru service,” he wrote. “Several competing businesses in the immediate vicinity have drive-thru service, putting this property at a disadvantage.”
Bevilacqua wants to use the existing 3,100-square-foot, one-story building as an indoor cafe area, while adding the drive-thru lane with a 13-car queue and an order board, as well as “significant vegetative screening” to serve as a 30-foot buffer for adjacent properties.
Pending approvals, the developer hopes to start work in the third quarter, with completion by year-end.
In documents submitted to the Planning Board, project attorney Jeffery D. Palumbo argued that the site is suitable for “quick-service coffee,” which is also consistent with the nearby uses and the town’s Comprehensive Plan. But without the drive-thru, he added, the property would be “functionally obsolete.”
By Jonathan D. Epstein
June 12, 2025