D’Amore’s 2nd Westwood store seeks more exposure

Phillip Lin
Published: Monday, January 31, 2005

Joe D’Amore says that people who have tasted his pizza always come back for more.

“It feels like love at first bite,” said Dave Abbot, a first-time D’Amore’s Pizza Connection customer.

But D’Amore says few have had that first bite since he opened the pizza restaurant in Westwood, so he is trying to adapt to his environment, opening up a second restaurant a block away from his existing store to increase the pizza’s exposure.

The new storefront, tentatively named D’Amore Express, is opening its doors on Westwood Boulevard in early February as D’Amore’s ninth location. Chosen for its placement near the busy Westwood Boulevard and Kinross Avenue intersection, the new restaurant is intended to attract the many drivers and pedestrians passing by to taste the pizza which has been rated as the best in the nation by Citysearch.

D’Amore said he hopes to gain more customers like Abbot through having them experience their first taste at his more visible Westwood Boulevard location.

“I bought the other store to attract more people and act as a conduit for sending the overflow here,” D’Amore said.

The new store is meant to serve just his pizzas, and those that want other side items will be redirected to the Broxton Avenue store.

Part of what helps attract people to his store may be his two miniature Yorkshire terriers named Cocopuff and Buttercup, whom he calls the “guard dogs” of the pizzeria, but he conceded that adorable canines aren’t enough by themselves.

D’Amore says with better publicity, he could greatly increase the number of pizzas sold. Those who typically eat at his store are loyal clientele who go out of their way to visit.

“Everyone that comes has this as their destination,” D’Amore said.

The new D’Amore Express would be the solution for the slow traffic on Broxton Avenue by exposing the D’Amore name to more of the Westwood population, he said.

Bryan Wong, former owner of the American Steakhouse Grill that occupied D’Amore’s current location, now works for the pizzeria and is able to relate to the difficulties of running a store on a quiet street.

He said the people who came to eat at the grill could not wait for the long preparation time required for steak.

“Most people coming into the place were businessmen with only half an hour during their break, and cooking the steak took 20 minutes just by itself,” Wong said.

Wong believes that pizza’s shorter preparation time is part of the store’s better success over his grill. The time it takes to bake a D’Amore pizza is about 10 minutes, and the restaurant also does catering for businesspeople, something the American Steakhouse Grill did not.

Wong also said his product did not suit what he considered to be an increasing consciousness of healthy foods among Westwood residents.

“I bought the best meat and used the freshest ingredients, but this area didn’t appreciate it since they’re into healthier foods,” Wong said.

D’Amore’s keeps its pizzas healthier than the competition’s through the use of olive oil instead of the typical lard used by other pizzerias.

D’Amore said that while it would be economically sensible to use lard that cost $4 a container in the place of olive oil which cost $84 for the same amount, he considers his business a “labor of love.”

“Invest in Pizza Hut, but eat here,” he said.

The dedication and care he puts into each of his stores comes from “keeping my grandma alive” through the memory of the stores.

Using recipes passed down from his grandmother, D’Amore only uses water imported from Boston because its naturally present minerals help maintain the crust’s crispness and distinct taste.

The sauce is made from July-picked tomatoes at the height of their sweetness, and he tops his pizza with Wisconsin Grande cheese.

His grandparents had opened but then later sold Pizza Regina in Boston, which is also one of the top 10 pizzerias in the Citysearch national ratings.

Taking into consideration the nearby college population, D’Amore has added a second floor dining area to the current location so large groups such as fraternities are able to come in and dine.

“Kids are creatures of habit. They come back when they find something they like,” he said.

Shimon Pagovich and Jimmy Lembo, staff members at the L.A. Tanning Salon two buildings down from the new D’Amore Express, eat at the current location often and say they are glad to have their new neighbor.

“We’re glad to have D’Amore’s move in next to us. It’s good pizza,” Pagovich said.

Some were concerned that business at the new storefront could be limited by people’s inability to find a place to park their cars.

“I don’t see them being able to attract that much more business since there’s never enough parking,” said Veronica Zimmerman, a fourth-year international development studies student.

Others said D’Amore could increase his store’s popularity through working on the pizzeria’s attractiveness.

“With their new location and a better aesthetic environment, I’d be willing to try out their food,” said Nico Smedley, a third-year history student.