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Grotto inducted into Pizza Hall of Fame

Dominick A. Pulieri, Grotto Pizza owner and founder, is shown in front of the Gambrills, Md. location. SOURCE SUBMITTED
July 3, 2015
Dominick Pulieri mixes dough circa 1963. SOURCE SUBMITTED
Two of Grotto Pizza's first employees, Arnold and Penny, work the carry-out window in 1961. SOURCE SUBMITTED
Dominick Pulieri's sister Mary Jean Paglianite poses in front of a Grotto Pizza take-out counter in 1960. SOURCE SUBMITTED
Joe and Mary Jean Paglianite, Dominick Pulieri's brother-in-law and sister, pose in front of Grotto Pizza on Rehoboth Avenue in 1961. SOURCE SUBMITTED
Grotto Pizza on the Boardwalk in 1963. SOURCE SUBMITTED

Grotto Pizza has been inducted into the Pizza Hall of Fame, which celebrates America’s oldest and most beloved pizza restaurants. Created by PMQ Pizza Magazine, the pizza industry’s No. 1 trade publication, the Pizza Hall of Fame pays tribute to the rich cultural history of American pizza and honors the perennially popular U.S. pizzerias that been in business for 50 years or longer.

Grotto Pizza is the vision and lifelong project of owner Dominick Pulieri. When asked what the Pizza Hall of Fame honor means to him, he said, “It is an amazing recognition for us and very humbling. This honor is not just mine, but shared with many Grotto Pizza team members that have worked for Grotto Pizza over the past 55 years."

Conceptually, The Pizza Hall of Fame has existed for nearly 10 years, since PMQ publisher Steve Green inducted Lombardi’s Pizza in New York Nov. 1, 2005. The Pizza Hall of Fame website, www.PizzaHallofFame.com, was launched in October 2014 as part of National Pizza Month. All inductees have been featured in the Pizza Hall of Fame section (formerly called Time Capsule) of PMQ’s print magazine. Grotto Pizza was featured in the January/February issue of 2014.

“Pizza is such an integral part of the American experience,” Green said. “We wanted to commemorate its role in our culture. Every pizzeria in the Pizza Hall of Fame - and each one that will be inducted in the future - is a local landmark. These pizzerias are more than restaurants - they are institutions in their communities.”

“It’s all about the customer,” Pulieri said. “Without them we wouldn’t be here. That’s the best advice I could give to anyone starting in the hospitality business.”

To learn more about the Pizza Hall of Fame, go to www.PizzaHallofFame.com.

Grotto Pizza Inc. was first opened in 1960 in Rehoboth Beach by owner Dominick A. Pulieri. Since then it has grown to 21 locations throughout Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania. To learn more about Grotto Pizza visit www.grottopizza.com.

 

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