Spotlight On New Business
Saratoga Business Journal
August 2004

Mama Mia's

At Mama Mia's, Saratoga Springs' newest Italian restaurant, Co-Owner Giuseppe Grisio puts his personal stamp on all aspects of the restaurant. From baking the pizzas to supervising the servers and checking on the customers, he brings old world flair to this family style eatery.

Spending his early life between Bari and Venice Italy, Grisio has now arrived in Saratoga Springs to bring his own brand of Italian cuisine to the town as a whole, not just the tourists. Located at 185 Ballston Avenue in the Price Chopper Plaza, Mama Mia's seats 85 comfortably as well as offering a complete take-out menu.

The decor features checkered cloths on the tables, soft Italian music and wall sculptures among the many plants. The ceiling fans waft the aromas of baking pizza throughout the restaurant, luring many patrons straight to that section of the menu. Patrons have a clear view of the immense brick oven where the restaurant's signature dish, thin crust brick oven pizza, is prepared. All dough is made fresh daily on the premises as are many of the other menu offerings.

A full range of classic Italian fare is available on the menu including numerous pasta dishes, calzones, sandwhiches and of course, the pizza. Pizza is sold by the pie or the slice, and at $1.65 for a huge slice of steaming hot pizza, no one is going to be unhappy with the value. Beverages include a range of soft drinks, bottled water, coffee and espresso. A variety of made on the premises deserts is available as well, from Italian sorbet to canolli. The prize of the deserts however, must be the homemde tiramisu.

With confidence in his cooking and baking ability, Grisio even offered a customer doubtful of enjoying the tiramisu a deal: If he did not like the desert then he did not have to pay, but if he liked the desert it would be added to his bill. After seeing his customer's face upon first tasting the desert, Grisio smiled at his server and said, "Now he pays."

With courtly service and top-notch food, Mama Mia's appears to be settling in for a long and comfortable stay as Saratoga Springs' newest family restaurant.