We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Victoria Tiso a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Victoria, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Some of the most interesting parts of our journey emerge from areas where we believe something that most people in our industry do not – do you have something like that?

When thinking about the restaurant industry I don’t think enough owners are transparent with their workers about the behind the scenes of what it takes to have the business run each day . I think this is critical when it comes to cost of goods, labor, taxes, and all other expenditures. Since day one of opening my business I told my men and women who work for me if they want to learn all about the industry and what it takes to have their own pizzeria I would do everything in my power to teach them. I had to make them think outside the standard norm of bills. I went from teaching dough recipes to preaching the importance of understanding negligence, liability, and sales tax. I had them look over inventory bills for them to understand cost , which would lead into quality control which can then be reflected back to the customers as to why prices may be higher with certain products. I want them to know it’s not just turning on a light and going to work. I preach to them to be ready for anything, save for a rainy day, and learn how to fix things yourself before outsourcing work.

I think that owners now are scared to do what I am doing because they are “showing their hand” or scared the employee will leave. Staffing is always one of the biggest concerns today that is constantly brought up about challenges in the work place. I understand the mentality of some owners being hesitant about what I’m doing because they could be losing their best asset. I just never want to stop anyone from achieving their dreams for my own personal gain. We are all in this together, being honest , transparent and supportive is the best way.

Victoria, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Victoria Tiso, I own Tori T’s Pizzeria in Malverne, New York. My story started growing up in my fathers pizzeria Louie and Ernie’s which is located in The Bronx. At a young age I learned how to be a waitress, which later transitioned into more of a manager role and then eventually learned how to make pizza. I loved everything about making pizza and the creative ability to make different pizzas or calzones each day. I hit a cross roads in my career as a college softball coach and had to make a tough decision. Do I stay and hope for a better opportunity or do I start chasing another dream I put aside. I decided to take a new approach at the pizza industry and I went back to working for my dad full time with the intent to one day open my own pizzeria. I took the next 5 years to really study pizza and create my perfect menu so when I was ready to leave I had it all figured out. My dad taught me everything I needed to know on how to make pizza, operate, manage and successfully run a pizzeria. He would always emphasize to me how one day he won’t be here, how I need to learn how to do things on my own , never to wait for someone else to do the job you need done. As hard as it was to understand where he was coming from I totally understand it now being an owner. My dad’s pizzeria is one of the best in NYC the pizzeria has been there since 1959 and was a very basic no frills, no thrills, old school pizzeria. I knew if I wanted to learn more I had to go out on my own and find someone else to teach me. I remember reading a few magazines and learning about different styles of pizza. The one style of pizza that fascinated me was Detroit . It was then when I was driving through my hometown of Pelham when I saw a new pizzeria opened called Pizza Fenice. That night I went online and saw their Instagram filled with the new found Detroit style I was looking to learn. I went in the next day and purchased a few slices and thought what if I can learn here? A few months later I reached out to the owner John and he hired me to come learn his style of Detroit pizza. I worked for John for 6 months and it was the best thing I ever did. He found a way to push me outside my comfort zone and gain confidence in myself and abilities making pizza. I always wish I had more time working with John because his energy and passion were second to none. I was sad to leave Pizza Fenice but so happy to call John a friend and forever thankful for all that he showed me.

I opened my pizzeria in Long Island in March of 2024 and it has been a phenomenal ride. I was able to incorporate the old school NY pizza my dad was making at Louie and Ernie’s and the Detroit Pizza from Pizza Fenice with my own twist to it. It has been a great time being out here and I am looking forward to the future. Creating good pizza, being involved in the community of Malverne and being a advocate for women in pizza is a blessing.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Being that I am a new business and still navigating with bringing in new customers my most effective strategy has been getting involved with the community events. I take pride in donating to local children sports teams, dance recitals , schools, and outings. Not only does it allow me to represent and market my business it helps support someone else’s love and passion.

This year I was inducted into the Village of Malverne’s Chamber of Commerce as a trustee. I will be working alongside other business owners in the village to help support and grow the small businesses here and help fund community events for the families who live here. Word of mouth will always be your best advertisement and if you put in the hard work and dedication good things will come out of it!

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

The best advice I can give to managing a team is take the time to know your employees strengths, weaknesses, and personalities quickly. Learning who they are aside from just work will allow you to understand them better and navigate better as a boss.
At the end of the day these employees are people who have good days , bad days and high emotions. Make sure to take care of them , respect them, value them and they will reciprocate. By having a open door policy and being transparent on expectations in the work place will allow them to be able to talk to you about concerns, strengths, weaknesses and things that might need to be worked on as a whole for the business. One way to maintain high morale is starting the morning with an ice breaker which can then lead to a goal for the day. The goal of the day helps people keep their minds from straying and holds them accountable to fulfill their duty to the team and business .

Contact Info:

• Website: https://toritspizzeria.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tori_tspizzeria/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tori-t-s-pizzeria-malverne

Image Credits

Matthew Indiviglio