THE QUEENS
JULY 2018
Photos courtesy of Centro Pizza Bar & Italian Kitchen
Owner of a Long Island City pizzeria aims
to serve up comfort to the customers
BY JENNA BAGCAL
happier” with their choice to locate the
penne alla vodka and eggplant and
jbagcal@qns.com/ @jenna_bagcal
business in Long Island City.
tomato. Th e owner mentioned that all the
“I always loved LIC. It’s a great area
ingredients to make the dishes, including
Steve LoGiudice wants customers to
with so much potential,” said LoGiudice,
the meat and produce, are locally
dine well and comfortably in his Long
who adds that the neighborhood has a
sourced, and that supporting local vendors
Island City restaurant.
“cozy town feel.”
is important to him.
“I want to give people what I want to eat
During the fi rst four months of business,
Centro also has an outside garden next
and what I eat at home,” said the co-owner
LoGiudice said that he has gotten
to their patio area, where LoGiudice said
of Centro Pizza Bar & Italian Kitchen,
great feedback from customers who
they grow fresh mint, parsley and basil for
located at 47-23 Vernon Blvd.
said that they enjoy the food as well as
the house-made pesto.
Th e Astoria resident opened Centro
the restaurant’s homey atmosphere. He
Customers have the option to enjoy
in February of this year with his father
shares that the business has also gotten its
wine and beer with their meal, which elevates
Stefano, aft er purchasing the business
fair share of repeat and regular customers.
the restaurant from the typical pizzeria
from the owners of the former L’inizio
As for the food, he said that pizza, of
experience in New York City.
Pizza Bar. Th ough Centro is still fairly
course, is the most popular item on the
LoGiudice said that he has worked in
new, LoGiudice said that he “couldn’t be
menu, with choices like buff alo chicken,
the pizza business since childhood. Before
opening Centro, the restaurateur worked
in his father’s Queens pizzeria for 20
years.
In the future, LoGiudice said that he
wants to expand his business and open
other establishments, but for now, his
focus is on Centro.
“I consider Centro a baby,” he said
and added that he’ll consider expansion
as it continues to grow.
Although Centro is a business,
LoGiudice takes a warm and familial
approach to running it.
“I love feeding the customers and I
want them to come and be comfy and feel
like they’re home,” he said.
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