Today we’d like to introduce you to Patricia Baldinucci.
Hi Patricia, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Our family, the Baldinucci family, has been in the pizza industry for over 40 years. Beginning in New York, Sal and Gabriel Baldinucci grew up in their parents pizza restaurant learning everything about making pizza and Italian dishes. Then Patricia, Sal’s wife and Sal raised their kids in their family pizza restaurant. Now, they have made the move to Austin, TX to bring their family’s traditions of using the best quality ingredients and decades of experience to the Austin area. Our mission is to bring the authentic pizza traditions of NY-style and Roman-style pizza in a quick bite by offering our pizza by the slice in a wide variety in a display that models pizza as art.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The journey from NY to Texas has been exciting and challenging. The excitement comes from introducing the concept of pizza by the slice to people who only ever had to buy a whole pizza in order to enjoy their favorite flavors. Being able to share pizza and explore different toppings and styles truly brings people joy. The challenge would be staying true to our recipes and the products we trust and source in a region where some Italian specialty foods are limited. However, we have found great partners who align with our standards of quality and authenticity to create not only our classic recipes but new and innovative flavors as well.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Personally, I have taken great pride in cultivating great relationships with our customers. Being in the restaurant industry for 30 years now, since I married my husband Sal Baldinucci, My role has spanned from cooking and recipe development in the back of the house to customer service in the front of the house. I would say my specialty is making sure when our customers choose our restaurant to dine at they receive the best customer experience we have to offer. From the atmosphere to the service to the food and beverage they have, their experience leaves an impression. This also translates in our restaurant concept, which is a fast-casual or fast-premium as we like to say, to making customers feel not rushed but acknowledged and heard and helping them curate a wonderful meal from the big selection of our menu. I also manage and have managed for 20 years our restaurants catering program. I feel a great sense of accomplishment when I can help someone plan and deliver a delicious meal to a large group of people. Taking that stress out of their plan for an event or meal is the goal. Overall I am most proud of my work ethic and dedication to amazing customer service.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
The greatest source of joy when owning a restaurant is when you see a customer with a smile on their face after eating the food. Or better yet when they take the time out to come to you and personally reflect their joy and satisfaction from a meal they had at your restaurant. You can truly make a difference in someone’s day when you serve them a delicious meal consistently with friendly and warm service. As we say in our family, we only serve what we would serve to our own family. People have actually thanked us for being a part of the community they live in so they know they have a place to come to when they are craving good food. That is what makes me happy, that and my family who are right alongside me the whole time.
Pricing:
- Slices of pizza $5-8
- Italian dishes $15-25
- Gelato $6-16
- Salads $10-15
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.baldinucci.pizza/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/baldinucci.pizza/
