You are an entertainer, not just a restaurateur Facts are indisputable. They don’t care what you think about them, because they’re facts. It doesn’t matter if you agree or not. Here’s an indisputable fact: You and I are both in the entertainment industry. We are...
A Pizzeria Survival Guide We're on day 7 of this incredibly unprecedented event known as COVID-19. Circumstances now will radically change the industry as well as society forever. I imagine a future with social distancing sections of restaurants and no contact...
How I righted a wrong I messed up huge. I over-promoted an event. I didn’t even know that was possible. Our 15th anniversary for Andolini’s Pizzeria was on January 8th of this year. Typically, our anniversary goes off with little to no fanfare. As a fun one-day promo,...
Steel & Velcro Steel sharpens steel. Being around the best makes you better. Knowing great people helps you become a part of their greatness. If you want to have a restaurant with no competition, I suggest you open a pizzeria in the middle of a desert. You’ll have...
Your box is so much more than a box If you are still buying the generic blank pizza box or the one that has some cliched Italian version of a pizza maker on it, you’re saying: “I’m Anytown, Pizza Place USA. Nothing special here, move along folks.” Branded boxes aren’t...
I love the night before Christmas. I’ve loved it since I was a little kid. I love gifts wrapped under a tree waiting to be opened. The anticipation of what’s inside of these perfectly wrapped boxes leads the mind to wander to a happy place of what might be in them. I...
Inadequate quality control can destroy restaurants Quality control is what makes your restaurant a success. It breeds consistency and dependability, which in turn leads to repeat visits. As the owner, you alone are not equipped to be the only one in your restaurant...
Why eating and drinking in your own establishment is a good idea Should I eat or drink inside my pizzeria? The answer is yes … and no. When it comes to eating and drinking your product, served from your staff, there are particular ways to accomplish this, without...
There's a pizza meme going around of the brutal scene in Casino where Joe Pesci is forced to watch his brother get whacked. However, instead of his brother, it’s pineapple going on pizza. The point of the meme is to show how traumatic it is to any true Italian Pizza...
Is your restaurant opening delayed? Was everything that you thought that would happen just not occurring? It’s easy to be down in the dumps, anxious and worried as you’re bleeding cash and you don’t know the day or maybe even month that you’re going to open. It could...
That you’ve trained to be lazy When you stay at a hotel, do you clean your room? Do you make your bed? Do you hang your towels up after using them? I don't, and why would I, the hotel has someone who cleans the room for me. Now, do you do that at home? I don’t,...
How to make your pizzeria perfectly imperfect As a child, I lived in Okinawa on a Marine Corps base. I was young, but I vividly remember living there and all the amazing culture and people I came into contact with. At one time, a local woman who was working for my Lt....
