Original Italian Pizza

It’s all in a name

Tony and Kim Vitale are the owners of the Original Italian Pizza (OIP) restaurant in Appomattox

As a young boy, Tony moved from Sicily to the United States along with his brother, mother, and father. Tony’s father, Giuseppe “Joe” Vitale worked hard to take care of his family, taking on whatever job he could. Eventually, Joe would save enough money to open the very first OIP, serving delicious Sicilian family recipes with the freshest ingredients he could find. The rest, as they say, is history!

If you’ve lived in the area for a while, you might recognize the restaurant’s name. That’s because over the years, the Vitale family members have continued to grow the restaurant chain throughout Central Virginia. This time, in Appomattox, it’s Tony’s turn.

While Tony has played a major role in the other restaurants over the years, opening this seventh restaurant is his way of honoring his father and mother, their Sicilian roots, and continuing their family legacy.

The location in Appomattox is new, but the Vitale family and their authentic Sicilian recipes remain the same.

Why Appomattox?

Tony and Kim Vitale live in Forest, Virginia with their three children.

While the Original Italian Pizza name has a popular following throughout Lynchburg, Madison Heights & Forest, the Vitales wanted to extend the family business into another local small town. This time, Appomattox.

To them, small town life means knowing your neighbors and your customers and treating them like extended family. Their decision to open in Appomattox came from that very philosophy: Serve great food with fresh ingredients, build relationships, and extend the family.

“Doing business in a small town is really intimate and we like that. We get to see families grow up and they get to see our family grow up, too” Kim explained.

Original Italian Pizza is not a large corporation where its nearly impossible to interact with the owners. In fact, Tony is at the new Appomattox restaurant every day, every week; and Kim is at the restaurant several days each week as well, working around her full time job with the Campbell County Public Libraries.

“It’s important for us to establish relationships within the community,” Kim said, “We want to know you and we want you to know us. You don’t always get that in larger cities.”

Just like Tony grew up in his parent’s restaurants (he was folding pizza boxes and washing dishes as early as age seven), Tony and Kim’s children are also growing up in the family business. On any given weeknight and especially on weekends, you’ve got a good chance of seeing the three young helpers around the restaurant.

Not only is the Vitale family working daily in the restaurant, but their staff have become like-family over the years as well.

“To us, the restaurants feel like an extension of our family. Some of the staff members in the OIP restaurants have been with us for almost 30 years. Things like that are important to us. We have people around us that we care about, that care about us, and that care about our business,” Kim explained.

More than just “another pizza place”

If you live in Appomattox you may have heard the grumbles of those complaining that there are too many pizza places.

(Writer’s Note: I believe there can never be too many pizza places! I love pizza! Don’t you?)

Tony and Kim Vitale are thrilled to have joined the community with their family business.

“I feel like Appomattox has so much potential and its going to grow so much over the next 10 years — and there's really room for everyone,” Kim stated. “Even though there are restaurants that might offer similar foods, each place has their own niche. We didn’t come here to run anybody out of town. We came here to be a part of the community.”

What’s Available at OIP?

Well, for starters, pizza! Pepperoni, buffalo chicken, sausage and pineapple, anchovies, any way you like it! If they’ve got the toppings you like in the kitchen, you can order the pizza of your dreams and they’ll build it for you.

(And if you’re not sure what to order, you can always try the King Pizza, which is topped with sausage, pepperoni, bacon, ham, beef, mushrooms, onions, green peppers and black olives! A little bit of nearly everything!)

You can order a whole pizza pie, pizza by the slice, or you can enjoy a variety of flavors during their daily lunch buffet which also includes a fresh salad bar, pastas, appetizers, desserts, and warm breadsticks as well.

The buffet is different each day, with regular items like pizza, spaghetti, and pasta primavera, and different specialty dishes added daily for variety. They choose to showcase different menu items so their buffet guests can get a taste of what’s offered on the menu.

It only takes one glance at the size of the menu at OIP to realize they offer so much more than pizza. Besides their offerings of regular or speciality pizzas, they also offer appetizers like fried zucchini, bruschetta and chicken wings, salads including a greek salad, shrimp salad, and tuna salad and more, soups like French onion and minestrone, and pastas galore!

Kim’s favorite dish is the A’la Caprese which includes your choice of pasta with shrimp, chicken, and sun-dried tomatoes mixed with basil, lemon, and white wine and sautéed with olive oil.

One of the more frequently ordered dishes is the Penne Primavera which includes penne pasta with zucchini, broccoli, & squash in a seasoned white sauce. OIP also has a “Create Your Own Pasta” option where you can mix your favorite noodles with your preference of sauce.

You can choose from traditional Italian dishes like lasagna, manicotti, or chicken marsala — or select from sixteen different seafood dishes! There are also a variety of subs, burgers, and wraps as well as specialty items like calzones and stromboli.

And, if you possibly have any room left for desserts at the end of your meal, you can enjoy their hand made tiramisu, cheesecake or cannolis (and if you happen to be too full for dessert, simply order it to go!) Desserts can be purchased by the slice or whole.

The most important thing to note about the food at OIP is that not only are the recipes heirloom Vitale family recipes, but the ingredients come from top-notch food vendors and are prepared fresh in the restaurant daily - including the pizza dough, pasta sauces, and desserts.

Fresh quality ingredients prepared daily and made to order dishes are part of what makes the experience at OIP a great one. That’s true right down to the grated cheese in jars on each dining table. The Vitales order large wheels of parmesan, then the kitchen staff will chisel off big pieces and send those through their cheese grater before the wait staff sets the jars on the tables. Now that’s fresh!

(Note: some appetizers and children’s menu foods are pre-made, however the Vitales choose to offer them because they are some of their family’s favorites — outside of their own recipes, that is!)

There are also a few options available for those with food sensitivities and you can ask your sever about those when you arrive or call ahead to inquire.

As for drinks, the restaurant offers a variety of sodas, tea, chocolate milk, sparkling water, warm tea and coffee, as well as alcoholic beverages.

“We’re very family oriented,” Kim explained. “We do have a full bar but it’s an addition to the restaurant and not our main focus. It’s there if someone wants a nice cold beer or mixed drink with their meal.” Nightly drink specials are offered from 4pm to 8pm for those wishing to have a drink with dinner. “We have a bar. We are not a bar,” Kim clarified.

From Our Family to Yours

The Vitale family has been overwhelmed with the kindness of the Appomattox community and the support they’ve received since before they even opened in November 2023.

Tony said, “The people here are great. In the beginning, when I was trying to knock out walls  and rebuild, people were stopping by just to find out when we’re going to open. People are really friendly here.” Tony worked on the restaurant space for nearly a year, doing demo work  and construction himself.

“I feel like we have been received very well here,” Kim added. “We are so grateful and so appreciative of everyone just coming out and giving us a chance. The amount of support the community has shown us in just the few months that we’ve been here has been incredible.”

“We’re a family. We have Sicilian roots. Our kids are first generation Americans. Tony’s parents built this business from the ground up. Tony’s dad has worked his whole life just to be able to show his family that you can do anything you want. You just have to have dedication and be smart about it and work,” she said, explaining that they are instilling that same work ethic in their children as well.

Not only do the Vitales hope to see you in their restaurant enjoying their family recipes, they also have the desire to give back to the community as well. Even though OIP has only been open for just about a year, the Vitales have already begun holding conversations with local schools and nonprofits to discuss ways they can be supportive and meet needs within the community.

“We want to establish those relationships and not just be a business — but to really be a part of the community and be involved,” Kim said.

The restaurant itself is large, clean, and inviting. It’s a great spot for lunch or dinner and it’s also an awesome space to celebrate a birthday, baby shower, or host an anniversary party or other celebration. Tony and Kim simply ask that if you have a party of 10 or more to call ahead so they can set tables up accordingly. (There’s also a very reasonable spending minimum for parties of 40 or more.) Additionally, the restaurant can be rented out for larger celebrations as well.

Normal operating hours are:

Monday - Thursday: 11am - 9am ($9.50 buffet from 11am to 2pm)

Friday, Saturday: 11am - 10pm ($9.50 buffet from 11am to 2pm)

Sunday: 12pm - 9pm (larger, $11.50 buffet from 12pm to 2pm)

Catering options are available and you can find out more by stopping by the restaurant located in Triangle Plaza at 195 Old Courthouse Road in Appomattox or by calling them at 434-363-8668. Gift cards are also available.

To-go orders can be taken at the counter or called in as well and have an average wait time of 15-20 minutes per order. You can find OIP - Appomattox on Facebook as well.

Be sure to check out the 2-sided zoomable menu for the Original Italian Pizza and Restaurant in Appomattox below:

ZOOMABLE MENU FOR OIP: