When, why and how to update your brand Checkered tablecloths and Chianti-bottled candles have long been the stereotype of Italian restaurants, and some concepts still haven’t left the 1980s. While traditional décor, old-fashioned menus and familia...

Providence, Rhode Island packs a punch when it comes to great pizza   Federal Hill Brick Oven Pizza From publishing a magazine to selling cigars, Billy Manzo has had an interesting and evolving career. He even worked in banking and film producti...

It’s a beautiful thing when beer and pizza come together When it comes to properly marrying pizza with craft beer, Coalhouse Pizza in Stamford, Connecticut, may be one of the best examples we’ve seen. A quick glance at the musically themed dining...

Exposed ceilings soar in popularity amongst restaurant designers Industrial duct work, wooden beams or a mixture of both reveal a look that is both modern and somehow a nod to the past. Restaurants that sport an exposed ceiling are on trend with desi...

Calzones serve, deliver easily While calzones have been around for decades, they continue to grow in popularity year after year. I want to share the best practices for creating some creative calzones for you to incorporate into your well-balanced men...

Baked ziti an easy seller with plenty of variety ollowing the history of ziti pasta is like walking through a carnival house of mirrors. Like a lot of Italian foods, ziti is used many different ways in all areas of Italy. Baked pastas are referred to...

Classic dish beautiful to serve, taste What does one of the most popular spinach and chicken dishes have in common with an Italian noblewoman soon to become a French queen? Chicken Florentine of course! The year of 1599 brought the marriage of Cather...

Shrimp scampi a perennial Italian favorite hrimp scampi is one of those staple entrées that have adorned menus around the world for decades. Its origin starts with a langoustine, which is a tiny lobster-like crustacean generally sautéed in olive oi...

Coupons are still a viable marketing tool, if used wisely Don’t tell Peter Wiley the paper coupon is irrelevant. Wiley, one of the co-founders of Kettering, Ohio-based Rapid Fired Pizza, says the chain sends out coupons in postcards, local discount...

How to celebrate an anniversary An anniversary means you’ve done it. Congratulations. Amidst all of the obstacles of operating a restaurant, your pizzeria has made it another year, another decade. There’s reason to celebrate. You deserved it. You...

Changing Tide San Antonio-based Rome’s Pizza adapts to the ebb and flow of the pizza business Few pizzeria owners have reached the pinnacle of success that Gus Nassar has with his San Antonio-based Rome’s Pizza. The gourmet pizza company pion...

Social Evolution Pizza Italia ushers in a new decade in San Antonio When Terrance Basone opened Pizza Italia in San Antonio, Texas in 1987, reaching his customer base looked a lot different than it does now. There was no Facebook or Google, and he wi...