Tarboro Pizza Inn reopens under new ownership

Pizza Inn, a mainstay in the Tarboro community since the early 1970s, is under new ownership.

The pizza place closed temporarily as employees underwent training and the store prepped for a new start at serving the community.

A notice on Pizza Inn letterhead, written in red ink and posted to the door while the store was closed read: “This location is under new ownership!!!”

According to the notice, the store is able to serve customers “in-house with our fresh, all-day buffet, online ordering through www.pizzainn.com, and call ahead ordering for carry-out.”

Pizza Inn was previously owned and operated by Tarboro Foods Group, LLC, which listed a Murfreesboro mailing address. Ed Copeland Jr. of Vilas was the primary operator.

When Pizza Inn opened in Tarboro, it was in the strip mall part of the shopping center on St. Andrew Street and later moved to its current location at the corner of St. Andrew and Oak Drive.

Most Tarboro customers of Pizza Inn associate three people with the restaurant — longtime general manager Dennis Hale, longtime pizza maker Marcellus Heath and longtime employee Demetrius “D.C.” Hill.

Hale had worked for Pizza Inn corporate for 15 years before joining the Tarboro store as general manager in 1978. He then spent more than four decades as GM before retiring.

Heath joined the restaurant as a 17-year-old and worked there until his retirement 44 years later.

Hill joined the restaurant in 2002 and was named general manager after Hale’s retirement, remaining in that position until he left in mid-summer to become a partner in Church Street Tap & Deli.

Throughout the years, numerous area youngsters have gotten their first jobs at Pizza Inn and worked their way through high school and college.

“I’ve had employees for almost 40 years now and some of them, I’m working their grandchildren now. It’s kind of come full circle … watching their accomplishments. Most of them start here as a first job,” Hale said in an interview before he retired.

Hale said he’s seen some of those employees go on to work as lawyers, doctors, law enforcement officers and military personnel.

“It makes me feel good when they come back by and see me and tell me thank you for what I did for them. … I call them my children,” Hale said.

With the change in ownership, a new Pizza Inn chapter in Tarboro began this week.