Television personality and AZfoothills.com columnist Nadine Toren is scouring the area, finding savvy Valley features, bringing readers “on the scene.” Every day she’ll introduce you to celebrities, athletes, and give you an inside look into local events and hot spots. She'll touch on topical issues, and keep AZ fans posted on all the big talkers around town.

Hungry?  Meet the Italian stallion serving some of the Valley's greatest pizza pies.

Victor Buono grew up in upstate New York.  His parents owned a bunch of bars and restaurants, so naturally, he picked up a passion for food.  He’d spend his nights helping the fam prep and prepare pizza and hot-dogs, as well as serve guests their buckets of beer.  However, in 1979 Vic visited a buddy in Lake Havasu.  Since then, he’s been an Arizonan.

In 1988, Vic and his family opened Buono’s Pizza in Mesa.  It’s obvious: creating cheesy, saucy pizza is definitely in Vic’s blood.  His eatery quickly became a Valley staple, providing people with the ultimate east-coast dining experience. 

“I never knew there was a New York-style pizza until moving out here. I would describe it as either the traditional Neapolitan with a thin crust baked ‘til golden brown, or something Sicilian, which has a square thick crust,” said Vic.

I’m now all-of-a-sudden hungry.

Because Buono’s became such a hit, Vic decided to take a culinary venture of his own.  That’s why he opened Gilbert’s Nicantoni’s in 2003.

His authentic award-winning pizzeria is named after his kids, Dominic and Toni.  (Dom’s currently in high school and Toni’s in college.) 

He says Nicantoni’s is a total family shop.  He knows his customers by name—a true gem-like quality of an independently owned and operated business.  You can often find Vic’s son helping him run the place, in addition to his tight-knit staff.  His pizza ingredients are all fresh, and the dough is hand-tossed to order.  His motto is: everything is good, but may not be good for your diet.  Hey, there’s nothing wrong with giving into temptations once in a while.  (Try the white pizza with broccoli or the one with red clam sauce.)

Vic’s currently considering expanding his biz, opening locations in the East Valley.  But for now, you can visit this New York-born Buono boy at Nicantoni’s.  Who knows…if you mention this article, he just might throw you a free slice.

For more information, visit: http://www.nicantonis.com

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