Meet Calogero Lograsso of Sal’s Ristorante & Pizzeria

Today we’d like to introduce you to Calogero Lograsso.

Sal moved to South Boston from Sicily in his teen years with his family. In 1986 he opened a sub shop (Sal & Betty’s) with his sister Betty on the corner of L & 8th in South Boston. In 2003 Betty decided to retire. Sal & his son Calo decided to rename the business Sal’s Ristorante & Pizzeria (aka Sal’s). They gave the business and the menu a remodel adding the much requested Pizza, paninis and French fries. They also decided to add deliveries to their business in order to suit the growing South Boston Community.

Now they have a booming business with a great dine-in experience. Deliveries that range from just a nightly dinner or catering for any party or business event. They tend to be the community’s “go to” spot for catering for any christening, holiday, especially for St. Patrick’s day parties. They were also featured on the food network for their unique take on the Arancini (aka the Riceball). They are open Monday through Saturday 6 am – 8 pm.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
In the 90’s our business was definitely affected by the drop in the economy as was everyone else. Luckily we were one of the lucky ones that made it through. Nowadays our biggest problem is keeping good help.

All of these great community kids keep leaving for college which is great for them but we hate to see them leave. And with Southie becoming less and less of a “family” community, good kids are hard to find these days.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Sal’s Ristorante & Pizzeria (Sal’s) – what should we know?
We are a Pizzeria & Ristorante. We specialize in Italian dinners, Pizza, and Subs. Any day of the week our lunch hour is booming with construction guys, policemen, and office workers from the seaport that enjoy our quality food that doesn’t take long to make. We have great salads.

Our #1 salad is the High Protein Salad which consists of teriyaki chicken tips, shrimp, bacon, and feta cheese served over a Caesar salad with red wine vinaigrette dressing. Sal is definitely most proud of his homemade meatballs and sausages. They are delicious!!

We are also known for our Riceballs. Which is a ball of rice and inside is meat & cheese and we put our homemade sauce on top. Riceball flavors: chicken parm, hamburger with peas, buffalo chicken, or eggplant

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Sal’s wife and Calo’s Mom, Filomena LoGrasso. She works all the magic in the kitchen. She’s an amazing cook and basically handles all the catering jobs herself. She truly is talented when it comes to cooking.

Contact Info:

• Address: 205 L street South Boston, MA, 02127
• Website: SalsOfSouthie.com
• Phone: 6172685800

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