Longtime Fiori's pizza maker hangs up apron after 40 years

Legendary Pittsburgh pizza maker Giuseppe “Joe” Pepe has called it a career after 40 years at Fiori’s Pizzaria in Pittsburgh’s Brookline neighborhood.

A craftsman of the oven-baked crust, Pepe helped found Fiori’s along Capital Avenue in 1979.

The Brookline Connection Facebook page posted a tribute to him with a photo from that year.

“Thanks Joe for all the years of great pizza and fond memories, and all the best in your future endeavors,” the post said. “We will miss you.”

Pepe hung up his apron on New Year’s Eve. His retirement came as a bit of a shock to other members of the family-owned business, including his nephew, Luciano Moscatiello.

“I’m kind of shocked that he retired,” Moscatiello said while assisting with Friday’s dinner rush. “I didn’t think he was going to. The idea of retirement I think is a shock to (the family). (Fiori’s is) the very definition of a family business.”

Moscatiello said he has fond memories of working alongside his uncle.

“He’s a very hard-working man,” Moscatiello said. “The world is changing a little bit. That dedication to one craft, to be a master of it, was a beautiful thing to watch. It’s really an amazing thing, someone who worked that hard their whole life. I’m so grateful to learn from these guys.”

Moscatiello said he would not be surprised if he saw Pepe come in to the shop from time to time, and hopes his uncle enjoys retirement.

Brookline Connection’s post about Pepe had more than 1,300 “likes” to go with 253 comments and 467 shares as of Friday night.