The Original Italian Pie eateries are all neighborhood
restaurants with décor that reflects the community each serves, such as this
one at the corner of Veterans Memorial Boulevard and Green Acres Road in Metairie.
In just 11 years, The Original Italian
Pie (4840 Bienville St., 483-9949; 5538 Magazine St., 894-0005; 5650 Jefferson
Hwy., Jefferson, 734-3333; 7070 Read Blvd., 244-7200; 5217 Elysian Fields, 288-0888;
417 S. Rampart St., 522-7552; 901 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, 832-1121;
3600 Williams Blvd., 469-4999; 1914 E. Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette, 278-0001,
5406 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, 887-9977; 1530 Lapalco Blvd., Harvey,
362-3657; 4350 Hwy. 22, Mandeville. (985) 626-5252) has grown from a single
restaurant on Bienville Street to a dozen in the New Orleans area and another
dozen franchises scattered around Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and North Carolina.
CEO Tom Cangemi says the company, started
by Musa and Fatima Ulusan in 1992, plans to have 30 restaurants open across
the Southeast by the end of the year and two or three new eateries on the Northshore
and Metairie in the next two years.
"Our strategic plan when I [joined] the company
almost five years ago was to grow the company from a local chain to a regional
chain," says Cangemi, a restaurateur who previously served as CEO at Ruth's
Chris and Dobbs House, an airport restaurant enterprise. In just a decade, Italian
Pie has spread to Raleigh and Durham in North Carolina; Pasadena, Texas; Jackson,
Miss.; and Mobile, Birmingham and Huntsville in Alabama.
The most important factor, of course, is the
food served at the restaurants, which all have the same menu. The interiors
of the various stores, however, are imbued with personalities of their particular
neighborhoods instead of having a cookie-cutter interior design.
"Our intent is to standardize the food quality
and consistency in our menu, but to allow enough flexibility as we develop the
new stores to allow some creativity locally," Cangemi says. "We want them to
fit into the neighborhood. We don't necessarily want to put a New Orleans theme
in other far-reaching areas. Some display regional area artwork to depict what
people will recognize in that area."
Standardizing the food is quite another thing
and one necessary to ensure the overall quality of The Original Italian Pie.
"That's the key to success," the CEO says. "It's very good food, and we use
the highest quality of products to produce it. The price-value relationship
is very good; we have substantial portions for the price, and our prices are
good."
Before anything new goes on a menu, it undergoes
lengthy testing in the kitchen as well as among customers before it becomes
a standard offering. The latest newcomer was wraps made with lavash bread wrapped
around choices of roasted eggplant, chicken or spinach and artichoke. "It's
a slow transition," Cangemi says of adding new items. "We have a lot of successful
products on the menu. In order to put something new on, we have to take something
off that's not been selling as well."
In addition to the wraps, Italian Pie offers
all types of pizza in both traditional and specialty styles, an array of sandwiches,
and entrees ranging from lasagna and manicotti to chicken cacciatora, shrimp
pasta and lots of salads.
Homestyle Trade Show
TV's Trading Spaces host Laurie Smith
and a whole lot of other home and garden experts will be available to speak
to visitors who attend the Louisiana Home & Garden Show Sept. 5, 6 and
7 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.
The event will feature more than 200 exhibits,
some featuring as many as 20 booths in them, as well as hourly seminars on subjects
such as faux finishes and renovations, frequent cooking demonstrations by local
chefs and a $10,000 Backyard Paradise Giveaway featuring the creative magic
of Oasis landscaping. There also will be a silent auction to benefit Make-A-Wish
Foundation from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday.
"We'll have everything for your home inside
and out, with quality ideas and products," says exhibition producer Frank Bergeron.
Vendors also will introduce new liquors and wines to the local market and have
tastings of margaritas made with Jose Cuervo.
Admission is $9; children 12 and younger get
in free. The event is sponsored by Gambit Weekly, WVUE-TV and Entercom
Radio Group.
Wedding Planning Made
Easier
Weddings with Style magazine and several
local businesses are staging a fashion show and wedding planning expo from 1 p.m.
to 5 p.m. Sept. 21 at Generations Hall (310 Andrew Higgins Drive). The program,
"Metropolitan Haute Couture," includes a fashion show at 1 p.m., featuring
designs from names such as Vera Wang, Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Lazaro,
Maggie Sottero and others carried by boutiques including Mimi, Perlis, House of
Lounge and New Orleans Tuxedo. The Look and Salon du Beau Monde will show off
the latest hairstyles and makeup. The exhibit, which features professionals ready
to answer bridal couples' questions, starts at 2:30 p.m.
Tickets are $100 for a five-seat VIP balcony table, $25 for the fashion show
and exhibit, or $15 for the exhibit only. Call 525-BRIDE (2743) for tickets
or information.
