Russo's Coal-Fired Italian Kitchen vs Pie Five Pizza Franchise Comparison

Using the family recipe for hand-tossed dough, the sauce made from fresh-crushed California tomatoes, and imported Italian cheese blends, Anthony became the sole owner and chef of his first restaurant Russo’s Pizza in the early 80’s. "It was 800 square feet. I had a pizza oven, a dough mixer and two tables. That's it. I could only sit eight people.” A few years later, he created Anthony’s Pizzeria, located in Clear Lake, Texas, and soon moved to Houston.

For almost a decade, Anthony refined his menu using classic Italian family recipes and zeroed in on the perfect New York-style pizza. In 1992, Russo’s New York Pizzeria opened in downtown Houston, Texas and proved to be a success.

 

Russo's Restaurants is a national and international franchisor of the fast casual and casual dining brands Russo's New York Pizzeria and Russo's Coal-Fired Italian Kitchen. Based in Houston, Russo's Restaurants are composed of a mix of corporate and franchised locations across Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Florida and Hawaii. Russo's has entered international markets as well, with locations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. There are an additional 20-plus units in development both in the United States and internationally. Chef Anthony Russo has created his concepts from years of applying his unique, family recipes featuring New York-style pizza along with a broad variety of handcrafted pasta creations, calzones, salads, sandwiches, soups and desserts, reflecting his commitment to his New York roots where food and family come first.

Our five-minute gourmet pizza concept is quickly gaining momentum. Founded in 2011, we've opened 48 locations, operating in 15 states and Washington, DC, and will have 500 franchise and company locations under development. Customers love how our pizzas taste, but our franchisees love how our business model makes dough! *Sister company of Pizza Inn *Turbo shelf oven technology that accelerates throughput *Labor matrix tracking methodology focused on volume *Significant buying power driving down the cost of goods *Restaurant construction team with over 56 years experience *Restaurant Support Center with over 50 employees to support you *25% sales growth year-over-year.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of a standard Pie Five Restaurant ranges from approximately $392,500 to $585,417. This includes $53,000 to $64,000 that must be paid to the franchisor or their affiliate. Certain Pie Five Restaurants operate, under different terms, in special venues, like airports and universities, that have captive consumer markets.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Captive Market Restaurant ranges from approximately $442,500 to $891,000. This includes $62,000 to $67,000 that must be paid to the franchisor or their affiliate.