For 26 years the restaurant has served the area with made-from-scratch food inspired by traditional Italian cuisine, and it all started when Tony made a spontaneous turn while driving in Clear Lake.
Tony and Angelo moved from Naples, Italy, to New Jersey as teenagers. After working in pizza establishments throughout the 1970s, Tony travelled to Texas in 1980 in search of an opportunity to own his own restaurant.
On his search, Tony drove from Dallas to Galveston, and as he was driving back up toward Houston, a NASA Space Center sign caught his attention. Out of curiosity, he decided to follow the sign, and on his excursion, he spotted Mario’s Pizza in Webster. Within a week he became an owner.
The Viscariello brothers owned Mario’s for 13 years. There they met and worked with James Ritz, and together the three opened Angelo’s Pizza & Pasta in 1993.
The restaurant’s success, Ritz said, is attributed to two key factors, one of which is authentic food.
The restaurant exclusively uses family recipes, he said, serving chicken Milanese, spicy cannelloni, gelato and more. The pizzas are made from fresh ingredients and hand-tossed dough and are baked in a wood-fired oven, Ritz said.
“A lot of people say they drive by and they don’t know that we have this kind of restaurant with this kind of food inside,” he said. “Everyone that comes here is very impressed when they try our food.”
The second, equally important factor that has kept Angelo’s in the Bay Area for over two decades is the people—both the customers and employees, Ritz said.
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“We have a really great crowd that sticks with us,” he said. “You’ll see the same people working here for many, many years and the same guests coming in every week.”
Angelo’s chef has been cooking at the restaurant for almost 25 years, and many waiters and waitresses have served at Angelo’s for decades. Repeat customers come back because they can expect the same authentic quality, Ritz said.
“We really appreciate all of our customers over the past 26 years here,” he said. “We love them and consider them family.”
Angelo's Pizza & Pasta
400 Bay Area Blvd., Ste. A, Webster
281-332-2404
www.angelospizza-pasta.com
Hours: Mon.-Sun. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
