Papa Gino's
8 September, 2010
Rustle up a slice of rustic pizza - Something new from Papa Gino’s
(Telegram & Gazette article)
By Barbara M. Houle FOOD EDITOR
We recently did a little Table Hoppin’ when the folks from Papa Gino’s stopped by the office to introduce the company’s new Rustic Pizza.
Michael McManama, Papa Gino’s vice president of marketing, and Joseph Ascoli, corporate chef, brought in a few pizzas for a taste-test. The new pizza got a thumb’s up from everyone who tried it. Good en-dorsement when you consider some of these people had chowed down on jumbo-size hot dogs with the works about a half hour before the pizza arrived. That’s another story.
During the interview, we learned about the Papa Gino’s test kitchens in Dedham, but we won’t share every detail because when foodies talk food, it’s nonstop chitchat. We can tell you that Ascoli is working on some new pizza toppings including caramelized eggplant.
About the new product:
The Rustic Pizza is the grown-up alternative to Papa Gino’s signature thin crust pizza. It’s the first new pizza line added since 1999. It’s larger and thinner than Papa Gino’s traditional slices, according to Ascoli, who described the pizza as bold-tasting, with an extra thin crust and a cheese blend that includes Asiago and a sprinkling of Romano on its edge.
The pizza, which comes in one size, can be cut into 12 square slices. The cheese version costs $11.99. Toppings are extra.
Before the company rolled out the new pizza, it did a 12-week market test last fall in Providence. It was an “overwhelming success,” McManama said. An estimated 270,000 pizzas were sold. “The pizza appealed to the company’s core family audience,” he added. “The majority of people who sampled the pizza said it was better than their present favorite pizza.”
Adults liked the pizza, and so did their kids, Ascoli said.
More good news.
Papa Gino’s will host a free Rustic Pizza slice night from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at all Papa Gino’s restaurants. The company will donate a portion of Rustic Pizza sales that day to Easter Seals and The Genesis Fund programs. Papa Gino’s also will offer a free small cheese pizza with every Rustic Pizza purchase through June 25.
There are 22 Papa Gino’s locations in Central Mass. — seven in Worcester and 15 in surrounding suburbs, according to Marianne Sabella Dempsey of Sabella Communications in Hopkinton, who joined McManama and Ascoli on their visit here.
Another bit of news: Papa Gino’s is going through a redesign. The first store in New England to sport the new look will open in July on Route 9 in Shrewsbury. Look for new colors, wood floors and open kitchen.
Who knows? You might even get to meet Slice at the grand opening. He’s the guy or gal who travels to special Papa Gino’s events in a costume that looks like a slice of pizza.
Slice was a big hit here.
We’ve seen adults hug Ronald McDonald, but a slice of pizza?
It happened.
File under: Crazy for Rustic.
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