FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 28, 2020 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 33
buzz
Queens native opens borough’s fi rst
Philly Pretzel Factory in Forest Hills
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Aft er opening its doors in Forest Hills
for business on May 15, the Philly Pretzel
Factory has received positive reviews
from pretzel lovers in the community.
“Being that something positive is taking
place during a really diffi cult time
and they see it as a sign of hope when
they visit us. It feels really good to give
them something to smile about,” said Jose
Villa, a former commercial banker turned
franchise owner of the fi rst Philly Pretzel
Factory in Queens.
Together, Villa and his wife, Nancy, a
public elementary school teacher, decided
to open the family-based business at
118-14 Queens Blvd., serving a traditional
Bavarian pretzel found in Europe and
Germany. Th e pretzels are baked fresh
daily and serve as a fairly healthy snack,
Villa said.
Th e company’s menu off ers a wide variety
of pretzels such as bite-sized pretzels
dipped in butter and sugar, mini cheesesteaks
melted in a pretzel ball, pretzel
dogs, spicy sausage, a pepperoni melt
pizza, and much more.
Additionally, Villa says he is looking
forward to eventually creating custom
pretzels, especially one for his favorite
baseball team, the New York Mets.
Th e Philly Pretzel Factory is based out
of Philadelphia with 170 locations nationwide.
Th e company has four other locations
in New York City with two stores in
Brooklyn, one in Long Island, and another
in Staten Island.
A Queens native, Villa grew up in Corona
and Fresh Meadows and now resides in
Long Island. When given the option to
choose a location in Queens, he considered
Forest Hills due to the accessibility of public
transportation nearby, he said.
“I love the community and there’s really
good transportation here,” Villa said. “I
think of it as the gateway to Manhattan
because the E train is nearby and the
LIRR is only two stops. If I want to develop
business in the city as well, it’s not too
diffi cult and I can get there.”
According to Villa, construction on the
site began in December and the new eatery
was scheduled to open in March, but
unfortunately, there was a delay due to the
coronavirus pandemic.
“We were told by corporate that it
doesn’t make sense to open a store during
a pandemic,” Villa said. “If it were up to
me, I would’ve opened earlier if possible
because a lot of people with pretzel franchises
were using their business to fundraise
and deliver pretzels to precincts and
hospitals. But unfortunately, we weren’t
open and couldn’t do that.”
Additionally, when Villa received the
main oven for the store it needed to be
hooked up by a company specialist before
they could open. However, the worker
was based outside of New York and
unable to get there due to COVID-19.
Furthermore, the staff trainer is also
based outside of New York and was
unable to train the new employees. Since
its grand opening with nine staff members
working part-time and full-time, Villa
said they have considered the importance
of everyone’s safety with social distancing
guidelines in place.
It’s strictly takeout and orders can be
placed on the company’s app and other
services such as DoorDash and Postmates
for delivery.
“Th ere’s a lot of equipment and heavy
machinery in here, so for me, it’s safety
fi rst all the time. And while it’s diff erent
having to wear masks and gloves, considering
the risks, it’s not a big deal for me at
all,” Villa said. “Hopefully, we’ll fi nd a cure
for this and will no longer have to do that
Photo courtesy of Jose Villa
in the future.” Overall, Villa says the family
based business is in for the long haul to
be a part of the community than the typical
franchise.
“We look forward to participating with
the community in many events, and
we appreciate the business that they’ve
already given us,” Villa said.
Th e Philly Pretzel Factory is open
Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m.
to 6 p.m. and on Sunday from 10 a.m.
to 5 p.m. For updates, check out the
Philly Pretzel Factory on Facebook and
Instagram (@phillypretzelfactory).
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