Over 40 years ago, in New York, two cousins learned to make pizza at their family pizzeria.
Young John Arena, (12) started working for 50 cents an hour. It was fun but difficult. He worked hard but he began to learn the pizza business.
After a short while he asked his younger cousin Sam Facchini (11) to come by to work as well.
This did not sit well with Uncle Rocky, one of the brothers who owned the pizzeria.
He told John, “I didn’t hire him, you did…so you pay him…”
And John did. He split his 50 cent per hour wage in half. Both he and Sam were now making 25 cents an hour.
Here is the story as explained by Sam:
Years later, Sam and John , would see an ad in an Italian newspaper in New York, describing a pizzeria for sale. The problem was that it was in the desert town of Las Vegas. The year was 1980.
The first day they opened, someone rode up to their shop on horseback and ordered pizza. They knew they were in for a ride!
They struggled at first. Making dough in Las Vegas was very different from making dough in New York. The humidity of the desert air affected the dough process greatly. They experimented and after a short while they perfected their dough.
They have come a long way since those early years and now make award winning pizza. They are both Legends of Pizza.
They have been featured on Entertainment Tonight, guests on Regis and Kathy Lee, and made pizza for Air-Force One. John and Sam, now host monthly “reservation only” pizza seminars. Metro has received the highest awards in the restaurant industry, including:
- Top Ten Pizzerias in America- USA Today
- National Pizzerias Operators of the Year- Pizza Today Magazine
- Best of Las Vegas- Las Vegas Review-Journal
- Best Pizza-LV Weekly Magazine
- Top Pizza in Las Vegas- Zagat’s Restaurant Review
- Best in City- aol.com
- Best Pizza in town- UNLV
They learned their craft well and now make the best pizza in Las Vegas.
Visit Metro at:
1395 East Tropicana Avenue
Las Vegas, Nevada
Tropicana & Maryland Parkway
Phone: (702) 736-1955
Repectfully submitted by:
Albert Grande
The Pizza Promoter