EricS.

Frankies-1974

From its grand opening on Valentine’s Day in 1955, Miami’s oldest pizzeria began as a true labor of love.

Frankies-FrankieAfter young Frank Pasquarella and his wife, Noreen, visited Miami on their honeymoon, they fell in love with the city and decided to relocate from Ohio and open a pizzeria. On Valentine’s Day in 1955, Frankie’s Pizza opened in southwest Miami; two years later, it moved to its current spot, a building on Bird Road that formerly housed a small grocery. The location immediately became a success, thanks in part to myriad marketing schemes: placing a free slice on top of every to-go box (to eat on the ride home, Frankie said); creating the “Frankiemobile”; and offering “free pizza nights” for hungry customers.

Though the business has seen great success over the years, it wasn’t always smooth sailing: Frankie suffered a heart attack in 1963 at age 38, and then a massive stroke left him paralyzed in 1980. “The doctors told us that he would never walk or talk again,” remembers Renee, Frankie’s daughter. “He proved them wrong; soon he was back at work to mind the store.”

Lauded as Miami’s oldest pizzeria, Frankie’s Pizza also consistently ranks as one of the top pizzerias in the city. It satisfies its faraway fans by offering “half-baked” pizzas all over the United States, thanks to nationwide shipping. Most importantly, the pizzeria, conceived as a family affair, remains so until this day: Though Doreen and Frank passed away in 2002 and 2005, respectively, daughters Roxanne and Renee help run the shop, and many customers have been loyal Frankie’s followers for so long that they, too, have become family. “My family has been—and, hopefully, always will be—a good team,” says Renee. “It all just comes very naturally; I guess that comes from doing it our whole lives.” —Tracy Morin

Frankies-car

5 Comments

  1. pmq-ericReply
    June 24, 2014 at 10:04 am

    Frankie’s Pizza is our Featured Hall of Famer for June 2014!

  2. David ThomasonReply
    November 21, 2014 at 8:30 pm

    My first taste of pizza when I was 10 years old in 1957 was Frankie’s. I was hooked from then on. Have even ordered it from 800 miles away and had it shipped!

  3. MichaelReply
    January 31, 2021 at 3:17 pm

    I think Frankie’s was the first square pizza I ever ate. Boy was just great. Still remember that. I lived in Miami and worked in Miami as a television news cameraman for 30 years. Live in The Villages now. Near Wildwood. Sure would be nice to have another square pizza again like Frankie’s

  4. y2fluReply
    February 25, 2022 at 6:53 pm

    Seems like he copied everything – the branding, square slices, everything – from DiCarlo’s Pizza in the Ohio Valley.

  5. Dave BrownReply
    September 18, 2022 at 11:56 am

    My first slice was about 1960. Not the Bird Road store. Franks brother operated a shop on US1 across from U M. eating it ever since. The absolute best.

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