TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The lifespan of the average restaurant is 8 - 10 years and those are the spots that don't fold in the first year or two. It's a tough business.
Think about this timeline: 7 U.S. Presidents have come and gone. Cassette tapes and CDs have gone by the wayside. But one restaurant I discovered is still going strong celebrating 45 years of service.
"My mom told me in high school I told her I was going to own this place someday," Chip Brown, owner of Vinny's New York Pizza told me.
Talk about manifesting a dream come true. Every week they line up, ready for a good meal the locals know Vinny's will deliver.
Chip never loses sight of what got him to this point. The past is ever present in the massive dining room mural.
"So this is the history of pizza… you've got the cavemen…" he told me.
More than four decades strong and this space doesn't disappoint.
"We make our dough fresh everyday. Our own bread every day and just a lot of pride in our product," Chip told me.
The food is one thing with all the feels from another time intact.
"It's what the town has known forever so that's why we keep it nostalgic you know," Chip said.
It comes down to the pizza cooked to perfection at 500° or a sandwich prepared fresh with classic recipes. Or it could be the signature wings after all, they go through 3,000 pounds of wings every week.
"We're the wing kings in Arizona," Chip said.
"We can walk up to the counter and we don't even have to tell them what we want. They ring it up and that's it," said Deb Manley who's been coming here for 25 years.
Her friend Cheryl Oliver feels the same way.
"It's just cool to come here and every Tuesday this is our spot."
You could call Chip a "chip off the old block" as the pizza parlor's namesake Vincent "Vinny" Ferrara gave him shot after shot. HE was a driver here right after high school, moved to the kitchen and eventually became a manager and earned the trust of those around him.
"I told him it will always be Vinny's. I will never change the name because that's what the town knows. I just don't change anything," Chip said.
Vinny passed away suddenly 12 years ago and Chip is determined to keep things the way they've always been.
"Once you get something good, if you stay consistent at it, then you're going to be successful at it for a long time. I truly believe that," Chip told me.
Meagan Chaney has worked here for 14 years and isn't leaving any time soon.
"Honestly my favorite part of the job is when you bring something out to a customer and just seeing how much they like it," Meagan said.
I obviously had to investigate the food for myself. Great classics. Pickles on a chicken pizza. Wings that rivaled the best I've ever had!
So many in Sierra Vista already knew but now I do, too. And so do you. Vinny's is the real deal.
Vinny‘s New York Pizza
1977 S Frontage Rd
Sierra Vista, AZ 85635
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Dan Spindle co-anchors Good Morning Tucson on KGUN 9 and is an award-winning storyteller whose work has earned him honors from the Rocky Mountain Southwest Emmys, the Associated Press and the Utah Society of Professional Journalists for both anchoring and reporting. Dan is passionate about history and loves to explore the Grand Canyon State. Share your story ideas with Dan by emailing dan.spindle@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or X.
