Sometimes the old way of doing things is the best way. At least, that’s what the Dough Company owner Ralph Del Priore believes.
Del Priore runs the restaurant at 570 Kidder St., Wilkes-Barre, with his wife, Carla, selling classic Italian-American dishes including pasta, pizza and soup.
Chef’s Table chatted with him about the eatery that recently celebrated 35 years in business.
Q: What is the history of the restaurant?
A: I grew up in the restaurant business. My parents owned Grico’s restaurant in Exeter, and my first job was bussing tables there. Several years after graduating from Wilkes University, we opened the Dough Company.
Q: What type of food do you serve?
A: We specialize in pizza and pasta. We spend a lot of time focusing on both. We make our own dough every day. We mix it, cut it and roll it. Then we let it rise until it’s ready. We hand-flatten the dough — no machines. We top it with loads of cheese and our own pizza sauce. Every pizza is made to order. Our pasta is classic Italian-American dishes: homemade Lasagna, pasta and homemade meatballs (we roll our own meatballs), and Fettuccine Alfredo. Our pasta sauce has its roots with my grandmother from Italy.
Q: What’s your specialty?
A: After our pizza and pasta, we also make our own soups. We have our homemade Chicken Soup on every day. It’s cured more than one cold. We have Piggy Soup just about every day, too. It’s based on stuffed cabbage (Pigs in a Blanket). And every day we rotate a third or fourth soup — Cream of Mushroom, Chicken Florentine, French Onion and more.
Q: How did your menu come to be?
A: We started with our pizza and just penne pasta and meatballs, and through the years we expanded the menu. We have to be able to produce every meal to please our guests. We want to provide a quality meal at an affordable price.
Q: What are your most popular dishes and drinks?
A: Our plain red pizza is our most popular menu item, and homemade Lasagna is our most popular pasta dish. We also go through gallons of our Chicken Soup every day.
Q: What type of seating do you have?
A: We have both tables and booths in our dining room. We have the most efficient, friendliest service staff. Our goal is to make everyone feel at home.
Q: What kinds of entertainment and specials do you offer?
A: We have seasonal specials. For the fall and winter, we feature Chicken Pot Pie. During Lent, we feature homemade red and creamy white clam sauces and Pagach (potato) pizza. In the summer, we feature special salads.
Q: Where do you see the restaurant headed in the future?
A: We want to continue to set ourselves apart by keeping things homemade and to offer a basic goodness. Sometimes the old way of doing things is still the best way. We’ll keep our personalized service. Our staff knows our guests.
The Dough Company
Address: 570 Kidder St., Wilkes-Barre
Phone: 570-824-1003
Established: 1985
Owners: Ralph and Carla Del Priore
Cuisine: Italian
Hours: Mondays through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Online: Visit thedoughcompany.com and Facebook and Instagram pages.
Laura Rysz is the features copy editor and calendar editor at The Times-Tribune and runs the Talk of the Times column, which focuses on local fundraisers and other events. She also writes Chef’s Table that profiles restaurants around the region. Additionally, Laura curates events online on AccessNEPA.com. Laura is involved in the special Mother’s Day edition and curates occasional features Marry Memories and Times Travelers. She is a graduate of Haddonfield Memorial High School, New Jersey, and earned an English professional writing degree with a minor in mass communications from King’s College, Wilkes-Barre. She also earned a certificate in Social Media Marketing from Rutgers Business School. Contact: lrysz@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5228.