With roughly 10 pizzerias in delivery distance of the village, it’s a wonder how all of B’ville’s slice slingers can thrive. The Messenger set out to find out why the village is home to so many examples of one type of cuisine.
“Pizza’s comfort food. It’s the default dinner when you don’t know what else to do,” said MaryAnne Williams, executive director of the Greater Baldwinsville Chamber of Commerce. “I think it stems from the fact that we have a lot of families in Baldwinsville and they’re always on the go. Pizza is a go-to economical dinner.”
Whether it’s a busy family seeking a quick meal between school and soccer practice or a young couple looking for a casual date night, Baldwinsville’s pizza offerings have it covered.
Sal’s Pizza, a village mainstay since 2002, relocated earlier this year to a roomy building to house its sit-down, full-service family restaurant, while Pizza Man offers a pub atmosphere. Twin Trees and the village’s newest pie peddler, B’ville Pizzeria, aren’t big on seating but will get you in and out with your order.
“The pizza places we have are pretty good,” said Mayor Dick Clarke, a self-professed pizza lover. “There’s not a bad pizza place in town from the ones I’ve tasted.”
Clarke said each restaurant’s crust, sauce and toppings attract fans with varying preferences, even within the same family.
“My mother-in-law loves Pizza Hut,” he said, adding, “We’ve gotten pizza from Pizza Man for a long time.”
Mark Bordeau, one of the owners of B’ville Pizzeria, said the key to success in a pizza-heavy town is finding a niche. In addition to pizza and wings, B’ville Pizzeria offers smoked barbecue dishes, Tex-Mex and seafood.
“No one’s got barbecue like we do out here,” Bordeau said. “We knew we had to do something to stick out.”
Bordeau said he and co-owner Mike O’Connell plan to bust out a mobile smoker and oven unit for roadside barbecues this summer.
Bordeau, who is passing on his old family recipes to his new pizzeria, isn’t worried about competition. B’ville Pizzeria opened in February in Sal’s former location.
“I’m not cocky. I’m confident,” he said. “I knew we had the best pizza around.”
Meow LoMedico and her husband, Sal — the eponymous owner of Sal’s Pizza — said they’re not just about pizza anymore. In January, Sal’s moved down the street and revamped a dilapidated building into the LoMedicos’ dream restaurant, which has a small area for quick orders and takeout and a spacious dining area in the back.
“He and I both knew we wanted to do this at some point — half-pizzeria and half-restaurant,” Meow LoMedico said.
“B’ville’s grown so much in the past year,” she added. “There’s just so much growth as far as educated young families that there’s enough for everybody. Everybody has their own little thing.”
Sal LoMedico said variety is key.
“Baldwinsville eats a lot of pizza. America eats a lot of pizza,” he said. “There’s so many things you can do to it.”
Most of all, what seems to keep all of B’ville’s pizzerias going is their involvement in village life.
“We have good people running the pizza places, so that’s a big deal,” Clarke said. He noted that many area pizza shops sponsor youth sports teams and community events. “It’s kind of a nice marriage,” he added.
Sal LoMedico said he’s received positive feedback on his new direction from his customers and neighbors.
“My wife is from B’ville. My kids go to school here. I’m thankful for the community support,” he said.
As for the naysayers who groan about each new pizzeria that rolls into town, Clarke said, “It’s capitalism.”
“We had the same thing a few years ago with liquor stores,” he said. “We can’t tell people they can’t put a business here because there’s too many of them.”
Clarke said despite the seemingly high ratio of pizzas per capita in Baldwinsville, many of these restaurants are here to stay.
“They know something the critics don’t,” he said.
