Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Is Third Time the Charm for Pizza at Bustling North Park Corner?

By Patty Wetli | March 25, 2015 5:52am

NORTH PARK — The newly opened Local Pizzeria has a rather modest goal — for people to actually eat its pies.

Local is the third successive pizza place to hang its shingle at 3352 W. Foster Ave., which initially raised a red flag with neighbors.

"I was skeptical," said North Park resident Hauna Ondrey. "There's been so much turnover on this street."

Owner Luis Garcia is well aware of his immediate predecessor's reputation, in large part because he lives just down the block.

"No one ate the pizza," he said.


Talk about "local," the pizzeria's owner Luis Garcia and his family live just blocks from their new restaurant. DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

Garcia's plan to succeed where others have failed is quite simple.

"The neighborhood needs good food and good service," he said. "The neighborhood needed something nice for the people."

The 30 to 40 diners Garcia said he found lined up outside the door on Local's opening day suggest he correctly identified pent-up demand for honest Italian food made with simple and seasonal ingredients served in a fast-casual setting.

Patty Wetli says the spot is hiring in the neighborhood: Local Pizzeria slices resemble New York-style pizza but "it's our own" thing, said owner Luis Garcia. DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

"I got so many people thanking me" for opening, he said. "It was a big risk that I wanted to take."

His menu runs the gamut, from entrees like shrimp and mussels to build-your-own pasta to vegan pizza made with roasted red peppers and cashews instead of cheese.

"This is even more high-end than what I'm used to," said Rose Brunk, one of Local's two lead cooks and a recent transplant from Seattle where she specialized in "rustic" cuisine.


The menu at Local Pizzeria also features several entrees, as well as a "build your own pasta" option. DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

Once Local began to welcome customers, Garcia quickly won over doubters like Ondrey not only with his vaguely New York-style pizza — "Delicious," she proclaimed — but with the eatery's decor.

Bryn Mawr Breakfast Club, which opened up the road at Bryn Mawr and Kimball last September, "got people excited for a higher quality of ambiance," Ondrey said.

Local presents a "nicer aesthetic," like the breakfast club, she said, and its BYOB policy will "be a big hit."

Local Pizzeria is now open at Kimball and Foster. DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

A glimpse at Garcia's resume should erase any lingering misgivings. Local might be a fledgling enterprise but Garcia is no newcomer to the restaurant business.

He spent nearly 20 years with Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, where his rise up the ranks from dishwasher to general manager included stops at Ed Debevic's, Wildfire, Nacional 27, Tucci Benucch and Scoozi. (Pizza peels hanging on Local's walls were salvaged from the shuttered Scoozi.)

"If you want to become someone, Lettuce opens the door for you," Garcia told Business Week, as part of a 1992 profile of Lettuce founder Rich Melman.

At Local, Garcia is likewise looking to give employees a leg up, albeit on a smaller scale.

Half his staff are students from the area, a conscious choice by Garcia to provide neighborhood youths with their first job opportunity.

"Yes, it's harder — you're dealing with teenagers," he said. "But if you have a great smile and you want to learn, I want to teach you."

Brunk and Erick Camargo, Local's other lead cook, also live just minutes from the pizzeria.

"So we truly are local," Brunk said.

In the Local Pizzeria kitchen with cooks Erick Camargo and Rose Brunk. Facebook/The Local PIzzeria

Camargo, who graduated from Roosevelt High School and studied culinary arts at nearby St. Augustine College, said he's excited to put his neighborhood on Chicago's foodie map.

He's challenged himself to step up his game, experimenting with recipes for a housemade sausage that could serve as a topping for pizzas or pastas.

"It's not even work," said Camargo, who also holds down a full-time job at The Purple Pig. "I'm in this industry because I'm passionate about food."

Though Local is still finding its legs, Garcia is already making plans to add delivery service within the month, brunch and rotating specials.

Said Garcia, "We're trying to please everybody."

Local Pizzeria sells whole pies or pizza by the slice. DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: