Mike Azzaro may not have inherited his father’s nickname of “Tomato Pie Mike,” but the Via Roma II owner still makes pizza the same way his family has since the 1950s.
Azzaro and his wife Denise purchased the Via Roma II property as co-owners more than three years ago, and immediately began implementing a new style. The property had previously been a pizzeria called John’s Pizza.
“The only things I kept were the pizza ovens, and that was it,” Azzaro said.
Now, diners may sit in the pizzeria section or the recently renovated dining area, which up until a few months ago had been a game room.
Azzaro, 45, grew up in Trenton above his father’s pizzeria, Azzaro Brothers, and learned to cook at local Italian restaurants and pizzerias.
He continued to cook as a corporate executive chef for two food service companies, Sodexo and Flik International, for 15 years. In that time, Azzaro worked with other chefs who were skilled in making numerous types of food. Asian, Moroccan and Ecuadorian are just a few of the specialty dishes Azzaro can prepare.
But eventually, he felt drawn to return to his roots in the small, personal pizzeria atmosphere.
“I got back into the business because I was really so unsatisfied with going out to dinner,” Azzaro said. “You go into these small places and take a look around you and say, ‘Wow, this is so easy, maybe this is what I should be doing.’”
The fast-paced restaurant environment is never too much for the owner to handle. In fact, sometimes it may not be enough.
“I like being in situations where it’s overwhelming – to put out a great dish under the pressure of having all your customers coming to you,” Azzaro said.
But what he likes most is cooking for people who really appreciate his work, he said.
Via Roma II’s revamped menu features several popular dishes. Customers will find the expected Italian dishes – spaghetti and meatballs, baked ziti, homemade lasagna – as well as a variety of other flavorful entrees, all homemade with fresh ingredients.
Chicken Ariana, named after Azzaro’s daughter, combines sauteed chicken and artichokes, portobello mushrooms, roasted peppers and Kalamato olives in a lemon white wine sauce with baby spinach.
Of course, the pizza is a key item on the menu, with its blend of a New York style crust, the flavor of Trenton tomato pie toppings and the special additions from Azzaro’s family’s style of making pizza.
“It has the flavor of Trenton, but has the crispness and chewiness of the New York,” Azzaro said. “When we make our tomato pie, it’s made the way my father did it … but we add some extra touches to it, too.”
Azzaro also uses the new dining room to accommodate small parties. Although his restaurant is Italian, Azzaro said he could also serve any other type of food: Mexican, Indian and Brazilian are just a few of the many dishes he has experience in cooking.
“If you want to set up a party, you’re not just limited to baked ziti or penne vodka – you can get that anywhere,” Azzaro said. “So if you’re looking for something different to incorporate into the menu, we have the skills to prepare anything.”
Via Roma II is located at 1280 Yardville-Allentown Road in Allentown, and is open Monday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 9 p.m. Delivery is also available. For more information, call the store at (609) 259-2229.
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