Bertucci's
Encyclopedia
Bertucci's is a Northborough, MassachusettsNorthborough, Massachusetts
Northborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The official spelling of the town's name is "Northborough", but the shorter spelling "Northboro" is also used...
-based private company which runs a chain of sit-down Italian restaurants offering brick oven pizza
Pizza
Pizza is an oven-baked, flat, disc-shaped bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings.Originating in Italy, from the Neapolitan cuisine, the dish has become popular in many parts of the world. An establishment that makes and sells pizzas is called a "pizzeria"...
and Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
food. It also offers delivery (from some stores), take-out and private dining.
Bertucci's was founded by Joe Crugnale in Davis Square, Somerville, MA
Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located just north of Boston. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 75,754 and was the most densely populated municipality in New England. It is also the 17th most densely populated incorporated place in...
in 1981. The company rapidly expanded rapidly into the 1990s. Bertucci's is found in the Northeast
Eastern United States
The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...
. Eventually N.E. Restaurant Co. Inc. bought out Bertucci's. Owner since 1998, N.E. Restaurant Co. Inc. adopted the Bertucci's Co. name in 2001.
History
Joseph Crugnale, Bertucci’s founder, was born in SulmonaSulmona
thumb|150px|Celestine V's hermitage and the remains of the Shrine of Hercules Curinus.thumb|150px|Palazzo SS. Annunziata and Museo Civicothumb|150px|Church of SS...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He landed his first job in a restaurant while in high school after emigrating from to Boston. He worked as a porter at the Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. In 1974 he opened his first ice cream stand. In 1975, he refinanced his father's home and purchased Steve's Ice Cream
Steve's Ice Cream
Steve's Ice Cream was an ice-cream parlor chain which attracted media attention and long lines when owner Steve Herrell opened his first establishment at 191 Elm Street in Somerville, Massachusetts in 1973. It introduced the concept of super-premium ice cream and customized ice cream desserts using...
from founder Steve Herrell for $80,000.
Crugnale established 26 stores before selling the concept to Integrated Resources in 1983 for $4.5 million, two years after the first Bertucci's Brick Oven Pizzeria opened, two doors from Steve's Ice Cream. Bertucci’s was opened to eliminate the possibility of an ice cream competitor moving in. The name was found in a magazine during a flight to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Bertucci's developed into a chain; 20 were opened by 1986, with the company growing by 3,157 percent. “As the chain grew, extending its presence outside of Massachusetts and then outside of New England, Crugnale's reputation grew, making both the founder and the company models of success in the U.S. restaurant industry.”
1980s
Two restaurants opened in 1985 featuring open-hearth brick oven specialty pizzas topped with ingredients such as artichoke hearts and roasted eggplant. No two Bertucci's were alike to avoid marketing as a chain. New objectives of 20 restaurants by 1990 began.While the company grew it spent less than 1 percent of revenues on advertising, relying on word of mouth. USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
listed Bertucci's as one of America's top 10 pizza restaurants in 1989; by then, corporate headquarters were in Woburn
Woburn, Massachusetts
Woburn is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. The population was 38,120 at the 2010 census. Woburn is located north of Boston, Massachusetts, and just south of the intersection of I-93 and I-95.- History :...
.
1990s
In the 1990s Bertucci’s menu added soups, salads, and pasta dishes before expanding into Rhode IslandRhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
.
Bertucci's became a publicly owned company in July 1991. The company offered 21 units for $13 per share. That year sales increased 30 percent to $37.4 million and net income increased by 90 percent to $3 million. Stock prices nearly doubled, selling for $24.75 per share.
In 1992 delivery and take-out services were added; Bertucci’s grew from 26 to 36 stores. In 1994, it expanded to Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
; Chicago, Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. Bertucci’s had 63 stores by 1995.
A $10.4 million wrongful death lawsuit against Bertucci's was filed in July 1995. Janet Walker, of Salem, New Hampshire
Salem, New Hampshire
Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 28,776 at the 2010 census. Salem is a marketing and distributing center north of Boston, with a major amusement attraction, Canobie Lake Park, and a large shopping mall, the Mall at Rockingham Park.- History :The...
, went into anaphylactic shock and then slipped into a coma after ingesting pesto sauce that contained nuts. The waitress, according to the lawsuit, failed to mention the nuts. A week later, Walker died.
N.E. Restaurant Co. Inc. purchased Bertucci’s for $10.50 a share in 1998 during a buyout. N.E. Restaurant Co. Inc. sold its Chili's
Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is a restaurant chain founded by Larry Lavine. The chain has more than 1400 casual dining restaurants, mostly located in the United States and Canada...
and On the Border
On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina
On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina is a chain of Texmex food casual dining restaurants located in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, and recently opened in Egypt, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea...
restaurants; it changed their name to Bertucci's Corp. in 2001. A $4 million advertising tagline "Everybody Eats" was developed in April 2002.
2000
In 2006, Bertucci's purchased the Boston based Italian chain Vinny T's, which was sold in March 2009.Menu
While it began by offering only brick oven pizzas, in the 1990s Bertucci's began offering pasta specialty dishes, panini, and foccacia sandwiches; seafood, meat, and chicken dishes; grilled dishes, including steaks, chicken, and seafood. Seasonal specials are also offered.Bertucci's is among the few US restaurants to offer Neapolitan pizza and be certified by the Associazione vera pizza napoletana of Naples, Italy.