Grotto owner shares his love of pizza
It’s hard to imagine a time when pizza in Rehoboth was as foreign as wearing sweatpants on the beach.
Hard to imagine, but it’s true, said Dominick Pulieri.
“I couldn’t believe the locals had never heard of pizza before,” he said. “That was pretty strange to me.”
Pulieri leaned against his pizzeria’s second floor balcony on 36 Rehoboth Ave. Running tan fingers through his white hair, he recalls a beach that was once much different.
When Grotto Pizza first opened in 1960, he had a hard time selling the Italian pies. Pulieri and his sister, Mary Jean Paglianite stood out on the sidewalk with free samples, but people didn’t know what pizza was. They were reluctant to try it.
He doesn’t have that problem anymore. Grabbing a pizza after a long day at the beach is now a tradition for many families who frequent Rehoboth.
Pulieri’s fascination with the cheesy specialty began with one of his own family traditions.
Every Friday, his mother would makes pizzas from scratch using an old family recipe from her hometown in Italy.
“It was my favorite day of the week,” he said. “The whole family came together — we talked, (and) we ate. It was always very special to me.”
At 13, he learned the art of making pizzas at a shop owned by his brother-in-law, Joseph Paglianite. He wasn’t quite tall enough though, and had to stand on a soda box to reach the counter.
After graduating from high school, Pulieri moved to Delaware where he saw the ocean for the first time. He knew it was the perfect place to start a business.
Naturally, it would be a pizza business.
“The shop had very humble beginnings,” he said. “The first year was about just getting people to try this ‘strange new food’ we were selling.”
Although the locals had to be persuaded, pizza eventually hit the Rehoboth mainstream.
Back then, Grotto offered a limited number of pizza varieties. The expanded menu now includes items like generously stuffed calzones, pasta dishes, cheesesteak subs, wings, burgers and fresh salads.
The original pizza stand on Rehoboth Avenue has led to a total of 21 locations in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Although Pulieri never planned to build a pizza empire, his master plan always included catering to his customers.
“No matter what, the customer is always right,” he said. “If you don’t have customers, you don’t have a business.”
He frequently visits each location to ensure consistent and top quality. He admits it’s hard to take a vacation because he is so active and hands-on in running his businesses.
He credits nearly 60 years of success to friendly service, knowledgeable staff and the use of high-quality ingredients — all of which, he said, are needed to create the best possible experience for his customers.
Making customers happy has always been the focus of Grotto Pizza — never short term profit, he said.
Pulieri’s determination and passion over the years has been driven by a genuine love for people and pizza that developed many years ago with a Friday family tradition.
“A lot of people do things for money, some good and some bad” said Pulieri. “But when you leave, you can’t take anything with you. I’ve always lived my life remembering that.”
hcarroll2@dmg.gannett.com
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