MANCHESTER, NH – Livia Ribeiro is bringing summertime to Hanover street with the opening of the second location of Summer Pizza, scheduled for February 26.
Ribeiro, raised in Brazil, grew up eating her father’s homemade pizza. Beginning in 1988, her father spent many years working at a pizza shop on Salisbury Beach, Mass., and became the inspiration for Summer Pizza.
“I grew up with him making pizza for us at home, and we decided it was a good business.”
Ribeiro’s father will be working in the kitchen, using his own recipe for thin, crispy-style pizza.
The store itself, cozy and brightly painted on the inside, sits at 119 Hanover St., just up the block from the Palace Theater.
“Our Realtor asked if we had ever thought about Manchester, and we fell in love with the city,” said Ribeiro, “We did a lot of research on the city and we thought this would be a perfect place for our shop.”
While the shop held a soft-opening on February 3, the beginnings haven’t been as breezy as a summer day. Before 119 Hanover St. became Summer Pizza, it was a diner for over 30 years. For Ribeiro, that meant she had to completely change the inside in order to get up to code. From start to finish, the entire process will have taken close to a year.
“When we first started doing renovations, a lot of people starting coming by to see the new place, they grew up coming to the diner,” said Ribeiro. “We renovated the whole thing, so I think it would be great for them to come now and see how it looks.”
When asked about plans to expand, Julio Andujar, Ribeiro’s business partner, explained that they need to “test the waters first.”
“[Expanding is] always a good option, everything in its time. We’re waiting for the perfect timing once everything gets going and settled we can go plan out the next step and plan out where do we want to move forward,” said Andujar.
For now, Andujar wants to focus on the customer’s experience and reception.
“They can expect a friendly atmosphere, like they’re part of the family. It’s the type of people we are and we want to make sure that we pass that on to our customers. Our goal is that every single customer that walks in the door, walks out feeling satisfied and happy.”
Andujar added that there are immediate plans to expand the menu beyond customizable pizza slices (starting at $1.85 for “The Slice”). They will also serve salads, calzones, and homemade cannolis. (Click here to check out the menu).
Summer Pizza is slated for a grand opening on February 26. Call-ahead and online ordering will also be available to customers at mysummerpizza.com.
