An iconic family-run pizza restaurant is closing its doors after more than 80 years
Victory Pig Pizza, a favorite among local families and college students, was founded in 1942 by the Italian immigrant grandparents of current owner Richard Ceccoli,
He operates it with his sons, marking four generations of Cecolis involved in the business.
The restaurant in Wyoming, Pennsylvania is so beloved that a group of friends, who used to dine there during college in the 1980s, reunited for one last meal.
Joe Killian, 60, drove two hours from Basking Ridge, New Jersey, to meet his friends John Loyack, 61, from Reading, and Bob Thomas, 61, from Swoyersville at their old favorite hangout.
The restaurant will shut at the end of the month after the Cecoli family put the land up for sale for around $1.2 million.
Current owner Richard Ceccoli’s (pictured) grandparents established the place in 1942
Richard Ceccoli, his mother Mary and his sons, from left, Richard, Robert and Randon – as they celebrate the restaurant’s 75th birthday in 2017
The group ordered 80 slices of pizza between them and took a share home for their families to enjoy.
‘It is legendary. We are stocking up,’ Killian told the Citizens Voice.
The Victory Pig is one of a dwindling number of old-fashioned restaurants that still offers curbside service where servers take orders from people’s cars and bring the pizza to them when it’s ready.
A sign on both sides of the building reads ‘Blow horn and blink lights’ for service.
‘I’ve been eating here all my life, I was surprised when I heard it was closing,’ local Ken Hetro, 71, told the Voice.
Mark Wilde, 69, and his wife Linda, 60, from of Hunlock Creek also joined the queue for one last slice of their favorite pizza.
‘We’ve been married 40 years but we’ve been coming here longer than that,’ Mark told the publication.
‘I’ve been hearing stories about my parents coming here since way back when. I’ve been coming here all my life,’ another local, Cindy Kluk said.
‘It’s so sad to see it go.’
Three friends from college in the 1980s met up for one last fix from their old haunt
The Victory Pig was established by the owner’s grandparents in 1942
The restaurant’s inside seating has been closed since the pandemic
The restaurant was originally a barbecue joint but soon became the go-to pizzeria in the area
Many fans travelled from far and wide for a last fix of their favorite pizza
Long-standing customers greet the staff like old friends before the restaurant closes for good
The historic diner was first opened by the Ceccoli family as a a barbecue restaurant specializing in pork sandwiches in 1942.
Lee Ceccoli brought her husband some slices of pizza for lunch one day and he sold them for a nickel each to curious people who never heard of the dish before.
The pizza went down so well that it ended up becoming a pizza restaurant instead.
While The Victory Pig has continued its curbside service its inside diner seating has remained closed since the pandemic.
