By Myles Ma
Jerry LoPresti was 6 when he got into the pizza business. His father, Santino, started him off washing dishes, and trained him until he knew every facet of the business.
Now, he and his father are business partners, and co-owners of La Piazza in Allentown. They have run the business together for 11 years.
Santino said the father-son working relationship has gotten better with time.
“When he was 20 years old, he thought he knew everything,” the 59-year-old said of his son. Now that Jerry is 33, he listens to his father more often, Santino said.
Santino, or “Nino” as he is more widely known, knows plenty about running a restaurant. He has worked in restaurants in some capacity since arriving in Brooklyn from Italy in 1973.
La Piazza’s Brooklyn roots are evident in its pizza, which has a thin crust and fresh mozzarella, made in a real brick oven. But the look and feel of the restaurant is inspired by Nino’s birthplace: Carini, Italy.
The murals on the walls depict scenes from the town, and the floor tiles mimic the stone tiles in the restaurants’ namesake, La Piazza, Carini’s town square. The touches were added after the restaurant’s 10th anniversary last year.
Nino LoPresti discovered the location by chance. He happened to be stopped in traffic when he saw a firehouse for sale, a firehouse he would purchase and convert into La Piazza.
Both LoPrestis believe in old-school service. At least one of them is in the store at all times, to talk to customers and to make sure everything runs smoothly.
“People come here, they feel like they go home,” Nino said.
Customers don’t just come to the restaurant for its pizza. They also sit down and enjoy Jerry LoPresti’s cooking.
One of the most popular dishes is the New York strip steak, served with crab meat and asparagus in cream sauce. LoPresti adds his own twist to the dish as a special, serving the grilled strip steak with cherry bruschetta on top with balsamic glaze.
LoPresti learned to cook solely from his experience growing up in a kitchen, and from reading a lot of books, he said. La Piazza offers his specials every weekend.
LoPresti learned everything about running a restaurant from his father, who taught him about dealing with customers, employees and finances. LoPresti remembered the first dish the restaurant ever served was spaghetti and meatballs, and the restaurant has made many more dishes since.
“I just think we use high-quality foods and we try to give the best service we possibly can,” LoPresti said. “And I think people see that.”
As for Jerry LoPresti’s two children, they are too young to be washing dishes — for now.
“Not yet,” he said, “but soon they will be.”
La Piazza is located at 11 Church St. in Allentown. La Piazza is open from Sunday through Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. For more information, call (609) 208-0640.
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