Our History
In 1945, the first Barone’s restaurant was established. Several siblings consisting of Josephine Barone, Tony, Frank and Mike Arpaia, Joseph Izzo, and most noteably Frank Monteleone, made Barone’s what it is today. For well over a half century the restaurant has truly been a family affair. Through the years, family members pitched in with cooking the secret family recipes which were derived from their grandparents from Sicily and Naples, serving, tending bar and even entertaining the customers with a song !
Barone’s was the first restaurant in Los Angeles and in Southern California to sell pizza
This dedication to their patrons made Barone’s a household name in Los Angeles and the place to go for pizza. Mega stars in the 50’s made Pizza popular. One of the first stars was James Dean, another regular visitor to Barone’s was legend Frank Sinatra and legend John Wayne.
Rectangular Pizza.
When it came time for these siblings to decide on a name for their restaurant the decision was literally “a sign”. The original restaurant was purchased from another restaurant by the name of Barto’s. When they asked the advice of a contractor about the cost of replacing the sign to “Italian Kitchen” they found that $240 was too expensive, but when asked if they could drop the “t” and add an “n” and an “e” the expense of $19 definitely fit the budget and this was the start of Barone’s.??The rectangular pizza began in Italy. To fit more pizzas in the oven, rejecting the NY round style and sticking to the original authentic square has been a Barones trademark ever since.
Barone’s trademarked rectangular pizza was not only different in appearance but aroma and most certainly taste. Enjoying a traditional Barone’s pizza is best described by our fans who have given us one of the highest ratings for Pizza in Los Angeles.