Eugeno Burlino rose from “street urchin” to owner of a legendary pizzeria. Eugeno Burlino came from Naples in the late 1800s and settled in Utica, New York, where he worked as a pastry chef. To supplement his income, he also attended the frequent feasts held in the predominantly Italian area and sold simple pies made…
For more than half a century, this legendary pizza spot has stood out in the so-called “Pizza Capital of the World.” In 1962, Angelo and Marie Genell partnered with Marie’s two brothers, Frank and Anthony Arcaro, to buy Laurenzi’s Restaurant in Old Forge, Pennsylvania. Not surprisingly, they christened the new venture Arcaro & Genell. Though…
Through five generations, one Allentown, Penn. family’s love of food—and each other—has kept this business thriving. Louie’s Restaurant in Allentown, Pennsylvania, has been family-run throughout its 50-year history. In 1958, Sue and Gino Belletieri opened up their first restaurant business (then called Gino’s) in Allentown, Pennsylvania, serving up Italian fare from recipes handed down to…
Spurred on by the women in his life, Vince Cianfichi’s pizza joint has thrived since 1955 with a formula that honors high quality, family ties and tradition. Behind every great pizza man, there’s a great pizza woman, and that goes for Vince Cianfichi Sr., better known around Scranton, Pennsylvania, as “Vince the Pizza Prince.” Cianfichi…
Credited as the first pizzeria in the country, this Little Italy institution has been churning out coal-fired pies—and inspiring young pizzaiolos—for nearly 110 years. When Gennaro Lombardi, a bread baker from Naples, Italy, set up shop in New York’s Little Italy in 1905, he forever changed the course of American eating habits. Serving the then-predominantly…
A Mountie named Jim Treliving helped turn this Alberta, Canada, pizza store into a powerhouse with more than 400 locations across North America. In 1964, Greek immigrant Gus Agioritis opened Boston Pizza (bostonpizza.com) in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with plans for steady growth. But even he couldn’t have predicted how far it would come—thanks in part…
From Broadway beginnings in 1964 to 400 locations today, this fast-growing pizzeria served cheese slices to Ed Sullivan in its early years. Naples, Italy, native Michele Scotto opened Villa Pizzeria (now called Villa Italian Kitchen) in 1964 with a handful of authentic old-world recipes and a commitment to hospitality and quality ingredients. Located next to…
This Coney Island favorite attracts crowds year-round—and from around the world. Zagat once claimed of Totonno Pizzeria Napolitana (totonnosconeyisland.com), “Only God makes better pizza.” And this legendary pizzeria has certainly received its share of cult-like worship since its beginnings in 1924, when Anthony “Totonno” Pero opened his own pizzeria in Brooklyn’s Coney Island (he had…
This block-long Brooklyn institution has been serving up spumoni and iconic square slices for more than 70 years. Ludivico Barbati learned from a local baker how to make spumoni and Italian ices in a garage in 1938. At first, Barbati, who had emigrated from Italy in 1917, sold his products in a horse-driven wagon up…
“Once you think you know everything,” Gary Amico says, “that’s when things go bad.” The De Lorenzo’s pizza lineage goes back four generations to Italian immigrants Pasquale and Maria De Lorenzo, who helped their four sons (Jimmy, Joe, Johnny and Alexander or “Chick”) open a tomato pie restaurant in 1936. Eventually, Chick opened his own…
