Pipitone's Pizzaria Brings Real Italian Pizza To Cottage Grove, Wisconsin

When Tony Pipitone was 8 years old he was already maknig pizzas in his father's restaurant. Now as the owner of Pipitone’s Pizza in Cottage Grove, he has mastered the art of great pizza making.

His dad, a restauranteur, brought the family to the United States in 1977 to open restaurants in the states. Their first establishment was Marsala Pizza Italian Restaurant in Stoughton. Other restaurants in Janesville, Wisconsin and Rockford, Illinois followed.

The family moved back to Italy while Pipitone was still young. He spent most of those younger years in Italy working in the family business and learning the secretes of great pizza making. When he was 18, Pipitone came back to the states to work in the restaurant business for his uncle.

Today Pipitone is married and raising a family . He opened Pipitone’s in early 2010, carrying on the family tradition of serving up great Italian cuisine. And the people of Cottage Grove, Wisconsin couldn't be happier. Beyond their mouthwatering pizzia pies, Pipitone's menu is filled with all kinds of pasta dishes, delicious sandwiches and outstanding deserts. Their tiramisu is so good that Pipitone says he has a hard time keeping up with demand.

He picked Cottage Grove for his pizzaria because it was a growing area with a need for family restaurants. Their small pick up-carry out pizzeria in the west side of the Piggly Wiggly complex next to the post office is the perfect place to start, said Pipitone. Their delivery area includes all of Cottage Grove, Deerfield, Sun Prairie and East Madison.

“I wanted to start small and give people a good product for a good price. That's our main goal–stay small, keep the prices down and give them something really good.”

The recipe is the same as in Italy, and Pipitone prepares everything. “I make the dough and sauces. Nobody else. It’s all prepared directly by me every day.” There's an art to cutting crust freehand and he’s mastered it. The deck oven that Pipitone's uses is tough to master for the layman pizza maker, but when used by a professional it cooks considerably better than the belt ovens used by most pizzerias.

Maintaining consistency between the dough, sauce and all other ingredients is key. “I make sure everything's consistent every day.” To do this Pipitone works every day. Even on days off he comes in early to make the dough and sauce.

Pipitone does get help from his wife and sister, and a small but experienced staff. Everything from the crust up is made from scratch. They even season their own sausage. An Italian distributor supplies all the toppings, but what tops it all off is of course the cheese, and Pipitone's uses nothing but the best. The Grande Cheese is the best anywhere,” Pipitone says proudly.

The restaurateur has placed his life into the new pizzeria and believes his father and uncle, who have passed away, would be very proud of what he’s doing. Pipitone carries his Italian heritage on his sleeve and loves that he can bring people the rich aroma and mouthwatering tastes of Italy through his food.

“I want to make sure people know I was born in Italy and I grew up there cooking pizzas. It’s what I do. We work, and we love making great food.”