NATCHEZ — The owners of Roux 61 opened a new restaurant called County Pie Pizza Company Monday in the former Ruby Tuesday building at 55 Seargent S. Prentiss Drive.

Within the first couple of days of opening, County Pie Pizza Company is already a hotspot for hungry patrons.

Cars quickly filled the once-empty parking lot around the restaurant at dinnertime Tuesday evening and inside were plenty of customers.

The menu is full, not only with customizable pizza toppings and calzones but also with a variety of alternative options, including appetizers, burgers, salads and pasta.

The portion sizes are also very generous, Adams County Sheriff Travis Patten said after a Wednesday lunch at County Pie.

“The pizzas were huge,” Patten said. “Usually I can eat a medium or a large hand-tossed by myself, but when they brought this shrimp boat pizza out I had to get a take-home box. People who go there to eat are going to get their money’s worth. … I’m hoping and believing that they are going to be a long stay here in our community.”

Booths inside of the restaurant were replaced with retro metal chairs and the wall art and logos are a collage of road signs — railroad crossings, construction ahead and the famous Route 66 logo — that tie the new restaurant to its predecessor on U.S. 61.

The restaurant has a sports bar in its center with several flat screen televisions behind the bar tender and in corners of the restaurant where they are viewable from any table.

After helping himself to a seafood pizza called the “Shrimp Boat,” Patten said he now considers himself to be a faithful customer.

“I travel all over the country looking for good places to eat, especially pizzas because that is one of my favorite foods,” Patten said. “To have a … pizza place here in Natchez certainly brings me joy. To have one that serves seafood as a topping brings me even more joy. My eating experience was great and I plan on being a repeat customer from now on.”

Restaurant manager Madison Lees said she and other owners were unavailable Wednesday to comment for this story.