Our Company History/Info

IN BUSINESS SINCE 1974...

Since the first Rocky Rococo Pan Style Pizza and Pasta opened on Gilman Street in Madison, Wisconsin in 1974; folks knew that there was something special about Rocky’s pizza pie. With fresh dough made daily in our kitchen, our signature, tangy pizza sauce and the finest ingredients, like our hand-pattied Italian sausage, it’s easy to see how Rocky’s became synonymous with quality.

THIS BOX ROCKS!

(ROCKY'S CLAIM TO FAME!)

A few years after opening, Rocky hit a home run with the invention of the slice box. The sturdy, convenient box is ingeniously designed to keep his pizza by the slice hot and fresh while making it easy to enjoy Rocky’s at the beach (yes Wisconsin has beaches), at your tailgate party or at the dinner table. Along the way Rocky also discovered that the slice boxes are the perfect way to share his pizza by the slice with schools, local festivals and other community events. Rocky’s Mama taught him well; sharing is good.

Rocky started with just 3 pizza slices … legendary Italian sausage, pepperoni and mushroom … now you have the choice of 5 regular slices and a great variety of Super Slices.

Committed to Quality

17 hours in the making...

In a process that takes over 17 hours, Rocky’s dough is made fresh daily in each of his restaurants. Rocky’s dough goes through four separate rising processes – a time-consuming process – that produces the sweet, thick crust that is uniquely Rocky Rococo. Mixed fresh each day, never frozen, rolled into dough balls and pressed into the pan by hand, Rocky’s dough is labor intensive, but a labor of love.

ONLY THE FINEST INGREDIENTS...

Rocky Rococo is committed to using only the finest ingredients to make his pizza: fresh vegetables, superior meats, hand-pattied sausage, his signature sauce, and only 100% real Wisconsin Cheese.

Ready when you arrive...

Rocky’s pizza by the slice is always ready and waiting when you arrive. Discarded after just a few minutes if not purchased, your piping hot, always-fresh slice of pizza is served in its own box. Because Rocky’s pizza slices take a great deal of time to make, a tremendous amount of planning and forecasting is done to ensure that the pizza you want is ready when you walk in the door.

Who is Rocky?

It all started with a man and a pizza pushcart...

Mr. Rocky Rococo was born in 1948 in Newark, N.J., the son of Lillian “Mama” Rococo and Albert “Night Breeze” Rococo. Born into a life of pizza, Rocky followed Mama’s example and helped to support his family by selling Sicilian pizza by the slice from a pushcart on the streets of Newark.

Rocky spent 20 years of his life pushing his cart and it is estimated that he wore out 347 pairs of shoes in his endeavor. As Rocky got older, he decided to strike out on his own. He seemed to have no trouble landing, in quick succession, the position of encyclopedia salesman, the job running the “ring the bell” game with a traveling carnival, and a job selling coupon books. Then Rocky started the job that would change his life….selling pizza peels. (To the uninitiated, a pizza peel is a big flat thing with a long handle that is used to pull pizzas out of the oven). Soon Rocky was getting into pizzeria kitchens all over the country; learning the tricks of the trade in the process and consuming thousands of pizzas. Like all aspiring pizza purveyors, Rocky thought he could make better pizzas. Not surprisingly, he could. Encouraged by his friends, Rocky opened his first restaurant in Madison, WI in April of 1974. The rest is history.