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BELLERIA PIZZERIA & ITALIAN RESTAURANT HISTORY

In 1953, Lena Bell opened a small carry out pizza shop on Albert Street in Youngstown, Ohio serving only pizza. The shop was an instant success. The quality of the homemade dough and sauce combined with the finest meats and cheeses available set Belleria apart from any other pizza place in Youngstown.

Within four years the word was out and the small shop on Albert Street could not handle the demand for this product. In 1957, with the help of her daughters Phyllis and Rose, Lena Bell moved Belleria to Logan Ave in Youngstown, Ohio.

The new location on Logan Ave was large enough to hold the equipment needed to meet the needs of their volume and also offered tables for a dining room. It was at this point that the true legacy of Belleria began. Within five years Belleria opened their second location in Cornersburg, on the west side of Youngstown.

This was only the beginning of Belleria's expansion. In 1971 the business was handed down to Lena Bell’s grandsons, which include the owner of the Belleria Pizzeria in Girard, Ohio. The grandsons had always dreamed that one day Belleria would be the most recognized name in pizza and Italian excellence.

Today the grandsons prepare her Italian specialties with the same precision. Grandma always told them when you have a recipe for success you stick with it and never sacrifice quality.

Belleria Pizzeria is one of the most well known and loved Italian restaurants in Northeast Ohio. The Belleria Name has branched out with 16 locations in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, and locations in the Columbus, Ohio and Florida.

Belleria Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant serves pizza, sandwiches, salads, wings, pastas, and other homemade recipes since 1957.

We have been excited about our growth since we began franchising in 1999.

ROYAL GARDENS PUB HISTORY

In 1913, Gaetano and his brother Giovanni Acerra started a wholesale grocery store in the City of Girard, Ohio specializing in Italian food. With the repeal of prohibition in 1933 they transformed the store into what became known as the “Royal Gardens Pub” specializing in spaghetti, steaks and chops. Gaetano’s sons Joseph and his brother Frank then ran the business from late 1940’s till the third set of brothers Mark and Joe Acerra took over in 1979 until 2017. The Royal Gardens was one of the first liquor permits issued in Mahoning & Trumbull Counties and was the first bar to house an indoor bocce court and serve imported beers and wings. The Royal Gardens wings have become widely recognized attracting customers from far distances as well as bottlers seeking to buy the rights to mass produce their famous Royal Gardens wing ding sauce. The Royal Gardens Pub is Girard, Ohio’s main local gathering place before all the high school sporting events and for any other occasion serving fine food & drink in a friendly neighborhood atmosphere since 1933.

ROYAL GARDENS PUB + BELLERIA PIZZERIA & ITALIAN RESTAURANT

**Ironically, when the Acerra family members decided to retire and sell the Royal Gardens Pub, it was at the same time the Belleria Pizzeria then located in Girard, Ohio had recently been closed and the old building torn down. The idea was then created by the current owner of Belleria Pizzeria (Girard location) to purchase the Royal Gardens Pub and combine two extremely well-known and respected businesses/brands with over 100 years of combined business history in the Mahoning Valley into one business and under the same roof located at the original Royal Gardens location at 105 W. Liberty Street, Girard, Ohio.