"Pizza is Love" at Vinny’s

By Erin C. Hevern, Wahpeton Daily News

Vinny's Pizza in Wahpeton opened Nov. 8, 2007, and ever since has been delivering and dishing up affordable and good pizza fast, while spreading their message that "pizza is love."

Jeremy Veum, manager, and DJ Wadholm, marketing and finance manager, opened Vinny's Pizza after they to started to think seriously about starting a business together in June 2007. Their goal was to bring a unique, fun and convenient pizza place to the Twin Towns modeled after smaller, privately owned restaurants in both Grand Forks and Fargo.

"It was quite a project," Veum said.

"It was fun though," added Wadholm.

Veum and Wadholm, who are both from Fargo, have been friends since their high school years in Grand Forks. With Veum having 10 years of chef experience and Wadholm also working for the North Dakota Small Business Development Center, the pair felt they had the right combination of experience to make their vision a reality.

Although neither Veum nor Wadholm are named Vinny, it was a nickname they've called each other since high school. They knew right away their business had to be called Vinny's Pizza. Being business partners has been nothing but fun for Veum and Wadholm.

As the manager works mainly with the staff, Veum feels it's important to give his employees a voice.

"The way we work here, we're all a team," said Veum.

This pizza joint, which is located at 116 1/2 6th St. N.,Wahpeton, had a strong opening and a lot of community support. Although it slowed down after the Christmas holiday, Veum said business is picking back up and the pizzeria's employees play a big part in its success.

Wadholm added that the calzone on the menu now was originally an employee idea and recipe. In addition to their calzones, many of their specialty pizzas, including a buffalo chicken, taco and barbecue pizza, are Vinny's Pizza's own mixture of special sauce combinations.

"We use completely fresh ingredients and it's all our recipes," Veum said.

Wadholm added the sizes of their pizzas are larger; a medium at Vinny's Pizza is the size of their competitor's large.

"You get more food for the money," Wadholm said. "It's more about the convenience of it and the affordability."

Veum said at Vinny's Pizza customers can get great deals every day. On their Web site, http://www.thinkfastpizza.com, patrons can finds coupons to use and register by e-mail to receive their newsletters, which also enters you in a drawing to win a prize.