Angelo replacing Pioneer Pizza in the Village Shopping Center

Angelo's Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria opened this Thursday in the Village Shopping Center on Springfield Avenue, replacing Pioneer Pizza.

Angelo Gencarelli, Jr., owner of the new restaurant that replaced Pioneer Pizza in the Village Shopping Center on Springfield Avenue, said he decided to open up a shop in New Providence after closing his previous ones in Clifton and Nutley mainly because of the people.

“I really did like the area. It’s really quiet,” said Gencarelli, originally from Nutley. “The people here are nice. I believe in the town as up-and-coming.”

Now open, Gencarelli and his staff offer more than 40 different types of pizza and other Italian favorites, but he can make any type of pizza a customer may desire.

Customer Lisa Barfield, who has lived in New Providence for 10 years, brought her children, Jack and Kate, to the pizzeria Friday for dinner.

“So far [the staff was] very nice, very courteous. We can’t wait to try the pizza,” she said. “I love what they did with the inside. It looks very rustic.”

“I love to shop downtown," she said. "I love that they’re bringing in new businesses. I’d rather shop here than in other neighboring towns. I hope they keep doing it."

Gencarelli said he enjoys providing catering for everything from small to large events, as it offers customers a different, more economical alternative.

“If you give me a chance, you’ll like me, and you’ll love my food, and we’ll build a great customer-owner relationship,” Gencarelli said.