A little taste of Tuscany, in the form of a new dining experience, is coming to Washington at a restaurant that has been in the community for the better part of a decade.

Marabella’s of Washington, a local Italian restaurant located on U.S. Hwy 17, is currently remodeling its building to refresh the restaurant and give it a look comparable to a Tuscan villa, said co-owner Sal Passalacqua. Passalacqua said he and co-owner Mossimo Mannino wanted the dining experience to feel more Itailian-like so they decided to remodel, calling on the abilities of local contracting company, DB&H Commercial Contractors.

DB&H Owner Daniel Bergevin said his company, and several contractors, are currently gutting the building and updating its flooring, adding a canopy on the front of the building for a better outside dining experience and creating a new bar and seating area, as well as updated bathrooms and a check-out section. Bergevin hopes to show his company’s quality of work through the remodel, he said.

“Our hopes is to show the general public the quality of work we do, and at a pace that suits our clients’ needs,” Bergevin said. “Sal and Mossimo didn’t want to be closed any longer than they had to be so we did the job in phases so they could open the doors and get back to serving their customer base. They are both great to work with, and we’ve enjoyed the time working with them and appreciate the subcontractors that have worked with us on the project with the tight timetable. This is an excellent business in Washington, and we are happy to be a part of this great transformation.”

Among some of the renovations include changing the tiles and adding a brick and wood accent throughout the restaurant to give it an antique look, Passalacqua said.

“It’s going to look 100 percent different from what it used to look,” Passalacqua said. “We have wanted to do this for a long time for our customers, and we feel like it will make them feel more welcome and improve their dining experience. We are glad to be working with DB&H and are happy with all their work and efforts in expediting this process so that we can reopen very quickly. The community in Washington has been very good to us, and we want to enhance it and make it a better environment to dine in for our patrons. We’re going to be here a long time.”

Passalacqua said the renovations are scheduled to be complete sometime during the first week of February. Upon completion, Passalacqua and Mannino, with assistance from the Washington-Beaufort Chamber of Commerce, will announce and host a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony, Passalacqua said.

Marabella’s Old World Pizza is located at 610 Carolina Ave. in Washington. DB&H Commercial Contractors is located 1000 W 5^th St. in Washington.