Downtown Worcester: Woosta Pizza to close next week
WORCESTER — When Brunilda and Andrea Gramo took over Woosta Pizza in 2005, it was such an exciting time for the couple that even after 19 years of pizzas made and pizzas served, they remember that their first day, Feb. 13, was a Sunday.
Wednesday, that memory tasted bittersweet as the Gramos said they will close the doors for good March 15, citing wavering foot traffic and increasing property expenses — problems they say date to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We don't want to leave from here,” said Brunilda, 52. “This is our baby which we started with barely speaking English creating a staple for downtown.
“But it doesn’t make sense anymore to continue.”
The Gramos, who were born and raised in Albania, took over Woosta Pizza from a few different hands in 2005.
The restaurant was started on Franklin Street by owner Michael Hill, who moved to 407 Main St., taking over the space where a McDonald's dished out Big Macs from 1974 to 1997.
Before Woosta Pizza Then & Now: McDonald's, 407 Main St., Worcester
The restaurant would become the perfect business setting for the Gramos, then a young couple in their 30s who moved to Worcester with ambition and “love for cooking” after four years of business in Greece.
Hailing from Albania, they had left their native country following a tumultuous and hopeless political situation after a civil war in 1997. Brunilda would leave behind her higher education studies in Italian, while Andrea parted with a profession as a wine technician, a vocation he had nurtured passion for since his teenage years in the 1980s.
“I would’ve still been doing that if it wasn’t for us leaving,” said Andrea, 57.
Hosted by family in Greece, the couple moved to Athens, opening a small restaurant near the Acropolis which they called Steakhouse. They would cater to tourists.
Despite the healthy business, the venture was not enough for the Gramos’ ambitions.
Coming to America
Yearning for something bigger and tastier, they emigrated to the United States with their young son in 2002.
The beginning was a classic story of emigration, starting with whatever work they could find.
Brunilda supported the young family working at Dunkin’ Donuts, while Andrea split his days between a position as a sous chef at the College of Holy Cross and Tony’s Pizza on Route 146 in Sutton.
Andrea, who likes to retell his life story in parables, explained what inspired them to seek out ownership of Woosta Pizza.
“A doctor does checkups on patients only once a day, but the nurses do the actual work,” said Andrea. “The praise still all goes to the doctors.
“If you cook for somebody else, the praise is going to the owner, but if you have your own restaurant, you not only get the satisfaction of cooking and the praise is guaranteed to come to you.”
After saying that, Andrea points to the sign at the entry of the restaurant, a handwritten chalkboard that states, “I’m not here only for the money. I’m here because I love to cook – Chef.”
Brunilda said remote work since the COVID-19 pandemic cost them 50% of their business, which they never recovered.
Moreover, the Gramos said that increasingly higher property taxes on the building’s owner followed them in a domino effect.
Even as the city supported them with two grants, Brunilda said they could not hold out any longer.
Thanking Worcester
“We don’t want to leave,” said Brunilda. “We created a community that loves us, coming here from Paxton, Holden or other towns, some even driving 30 minutes to get to our restaurant.
“We thank Worcester for their support all these years.”
The Gramos said they would like to return to the restaurant business, but for the time being, they would like to take some time off, traveling to visit their family in Albania and Greece.
“After 19 years of working 70 hours a day, every day, we would like to recuperate and get ourselves together,” said Brunilda. “We will decide what the next step is, but it’s 90% sure that we will be in the same industry.
“We just don't know where and we don't know when.”
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Woosta Pizza to close next week
