Gerry’s Pizzeria

Since 1980, Gerry Ricci and his family have satisfied a growing number of Wilkes- Barre, PA, locals with consistently great-tasting food made with consistently superior ingredients.

From back when Gerry’s dad, Angelo, helped open the shop, the family has worked to delight their guests of all ages. For example, youngsters are encouraged to come watch busy pie makers in the kitchen from behind a huge observation window.

On request, Gerry’s team can also drizzle special brief messages (customer names, “Happy B-Day,” “Be Mine,” etc.) onto just-baked cheese pizzas, using a squeeze bottle of smooth-finish pizza sauce.

As a next-generation family leader, Gerald Jr. has increasingly taken over day-to-day operations while also leveraging social media to help deepen the restaurant’s roots in the community. He pays especially close attention to online reviews and responds quickly to both positive and negative comments, helping to reinforce the family’s reputation for valuing customer feedback.

All of these factors (plus consistently great food) have combined to give the family a unique challenge … the restaurant’s steadily rising popularity has led to the dining room reaching capacity earlier and earlier during peak days. Because takeout demand has also grown, Gerry’s triple- decker ovens were also topping out sooner, slowing table service and causing takeout waits of 90 minutes or more.

Then, after years of being “landlocked” by neighboring businesses, the Riccis finally acquired the building next door, where they added another 60-seat dining room. They also added a second pizza kitchen dedicated to dine-in guests (to speed table service in both dining rooms), which also freed enough oven space in the original kitchen to greatly reduce takeout times.

To keep the separate kitchens coordinated, the Riccis also upgraded from their “paper ticket” order system to a computerized POS which automatically routes each order to the appropriate kitchen. Eliminating handwritten tickets has also boosted order accuracy and reduced time- consuming “re-dos” which slow the kitchen during peak periods.

The bottom line is that by reinvesting in their business, the Riccis have laid the foundations for continuing healthy growth into the future!