Second-oldest Fricano’s closing after 45 years

ALAMO TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — The second-oldest Fricano’s is closing so the owner can retire.

The pizzeria , located at 7454 6th St. near D Avenue in Alamo Township northwest of Kalamazoo, is closing after Saturday.

The restaurant has been sold, owner Phil Fricano told News 8, and a new concept is set to take its place. He stressed the other Fricano’s — in Grand Haven, Holland, Comstock Park, Muskegon and Manistee and all owned by his family members — are remaining open and “are continuing the success of Fricano’s.”

As he gets ready to close the doors at his location, Fricano said customers have been “coming out in droves.”

“That is the most humbling thing. I’ve said forever that our location here has got the greatest clientele of any restaurant, and it is sure proving correct with what we’ve had going on,” he told News 8. “A lot of hugs, a lot of well wishes, some tears. … Just a lot of looking back and discussing our time here with them. But it’s been amazing.”

The Fricano’s brand was first started in 1949 in Grand Haven by Phil Fricano’s dad and uncle. He told News 8 his dad owned a bar in Grand Haven and got the idea to serve pizza during a visit to Chicago. He came up with his own thin-crust pizza recipe, a recipe that has pushed the pizzeria’s success, Phil Fricano said.

“There’s only one thing, and it’s that pizza , that pizza that was created by my father in 1949,” he said. “Nobody knew what a pizza was.”

Fricano said the pizza went on to win a lot of awards, including being named “Michigan’s favorite pizza” in a Pure Michigan campaign.

After getting a job at age 16 at the Grand Haven location in the 1970s, Fricano opened his own location in Alamo Township in 1979. He later opened another location in Caledonia (which closed in January).

Over the decades, his drive has come from pride in the service and product his restaurant offered.

“We’re a remote location,” he said. “I’ve always felt if a customer was going to take their time to drive out here, we wanted the best experience waiting for them.”

As he gets ready to retire, Fricano said he’s looking forward to traveling to visit his grandchildren. He’s also looking forward to golfing, hunting, and not dealing with the pressure and stress that comes with owning a restaurant.

“I’ve been at it 45 years here, I was at it about seven years in Grand Haven,” he said. “So it’s been over 50 years I’ve been doing it. … I still have my health and I just thought one day, ‘If not now, when?’ I could keep going, but I’ve decided that this is this is the end, this is enough.”

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