Waldor 1 Casey Waldor Ms.

Fuentes ENG 1101 November 9, 2013 Life in a New Jersey Pizzeria The atmosphere of a New Jersey pizzeria is similar to a second home according to Louie, the owner of Louies Pizza in Great Meadows, New Jersey. The environment is one of the greatest aspects of the pizzeria. Most of the customers are regulars and are known by name. Sometimes, people are even known by their regular order. When customers are known by name, they feel much more comfortable and are more likely to return to the pizzeria. Not only do the customers love the overall environment, so do the employees. Louie and Izzy are the two bosses of the pizzeria. At least three girls work from five to eight alternating throughout the week delivering, answering phones, handling the register and counter, and helping back in the kitchen when help is needed. Being comfortable with the work atmosphere will result in a happy and hard working staff. A pizzeria is a discourse community because all employees share a common goal in wanting the pizzeria to succeed. Also, all of the employees share a common language that is specific to the pizzeria. Louies becomes the employees second family and that is why it is so enjoyable for the girls that work there. A lot of times, teens hate their jobs due to the fact that they do not enjoy themselves and do need feel at ease with their surroundings. When working at Louies all the employees, especially the girls are assured that their happiness is just as important as the total amount of work that is put in (Hernandez). Both owners are compassionate and act like father figures in a way to the girls that work for them. Even though happiness usually seems apparent,

Waldor 2 fights do occur. Since the employees are all so close just like a family, bickering is bound to happen. Disputes between some of the girls happen due to the schedule. The schedule is made by the girls to make sure that they work the days that are best for them. Sometimes, last minute things come up and the other girls are not able to cover for one another on such short notice. Even the bosses get into fights with the girls. Most of the time, senseless actions cause the arguments and things tend to blow over quickly. But at other times, grudges are held and there can be tension throughout the pizzeria. Even though no one enjoys fighting, thats what makes Louies Pizzeria just like a family. Every business has a common goal. The people that work for the business might not all share that exact goal, but they all share a common interest, which is why they all work together. Louies Pizzas main goal is to keep the business open and to prove to the customers that their pizza is the best pizza money can buy (Djecbtric). Achieving these goals on a daily basis can be harder at times than others. Some months are busier then other months but keeping a positive attitude helps maintain a steady amount of business. When certain months are harder, it can be a disappointment that the common goal of the business is not being reached. To make up for it, during the busy months, everyone works their hardest to make up for the business that was lost during the slow times. Becoming a part of the Louies family can be extremely intimidating at first. Both bosses speak other languages fluently. They have friends and family members that are constantly coming in and out usually speaking Spanish. The first few days the new girl starts working are quite uncomfortable. Louie and Izzy have a very big sense of humor. Without knowing them, it is hard to decipher if they are joking or being serious. The girls say it is easiest to just laugh when something said is not understood. Once the girls are in the environment a few times, it

Waldor 3 becomes much more comfortable and the girls start to express who they are. Learning the specific lexis and adapting to the lifestyle of the pizzeria is all it takes for a newcomer to belong. Even though it may take time and getting used to, it is not a difficult skill to learn (Monk). Basically, the pizzeria just needs to be added to their life and who they are. Developing authority just depends on experience. The more time that is spent working at Louies, the more power that is obtained. Some of the girls have higher authority then the other girls, but Louie and Izzy treat all of the girls as if they are on the same level (Djecbtric). Having more power comes with more responsibility. A business that has no authority will not be successful. Each restaurant has a specific lexis, but a pizzerias is much more complex than other restaurants. Everyone in the pizzeria must be able to speak and understand the precise terminology to be able to be successful. The hardest part is to know the prices of all items that are on the menu. A few months ago, many of the items prices increased. Adapting to the new change took some time for the girls, but it became second nature over time. The menu consists of appetizers, hot subs, pasta dinners, specials, pizza pies, and a childrens menu. For example, a plain pizza is ten dollars, a half topping is ten dollars and eighty-seven cents, and a full topping is a dollar and fifty cents each. For toppings on pizzas, the girls must know that roni stands for pepperoni, pep stands for peppers, chix stands for chicken, ep stands for eggplant, mush stands for mushroom, x stands for extra of a certain topping, a dash stands for plain/cheese, and many more. For the most part, the toppings are common sense, but at times they can get confusing. Dinners come with garlic bread, which is abbreviated as gb, and a house salad. Special dinners only come with garlic bread. When taking an order that involves garlic bread, the customer must be asked if they would prefer garlic bread or regular sliced bread. Another difficult thing to get used to is being able to tell the different types of dressings apart. Ranch and creamy Italian can

Waldor 4 very easily be confused, which can result in an unhappy customer. Learning all the different terminology takes a lot of time, but after awhile, it becomes similar to a second language. Deliveries play a key role in the income of Louies Pizzeria (Hernandez). Many people are accustomed to having their pizza delivered by boys, but Louies employees are only girls. The girls usually do not complain though because they get much bigger tips then the average delivery boy would make. When totaling up the ticket, a dollar must be added for all deliveries for a delivery charge. Knowing the approximately ten-mile delivery radius is a very challenging task. A lot of the places that call for delivery do not have the greatest signal and it is nearly impossible to be able to use a GPS. The girls must know the quickest routes especially when there are multiple deliveries that are being taken at the same time. Being presentable, fast, and efficient are very important factors when it comes to deliveries. Communication amongst employees is always a must. The best way employees communicate with each other is over the phone. Izzy is the boss that tends to deal with the drama. If one of the girls says something inappropriate to another girl, then he tells the girls to go talk to him. He does not want there to be any drama between his employees and likes to handle situations like that since he has the authority (Hernandez). When on the job, there are no hand signals that are used to make communicating easier. Since Izzy is Hispanic and sometimes has trouble understanding certain concepts, it is easier to just have verbal communication between one another. When shortcuts have tried to be created, they have never ended well and just end in confusion. When something needs to be communicated to all the employees quickly, texting is the best method to be used. When communicating with Izzy, it is easier to call him or message him on Facebook. Louie usually does not handle a lot of the drama and stuff similar to that, but he is easiest to get a hold of by calling him (Hernandez). When taking orders, the method of

Waldor 5 communicating is through the tickets. The tickets are when most of the lexis is used. Depending on what needs to get done and how fast, that is how a communication method is determined. The customers always have to come first if any kind of restaurant wants to make a profit. Having the best customer service possible is always important. Difficult customers are one of the hardest things for an employee to deal with no matter how much experience they have. Keeping a cool and calm attitude shows that they are mature and usually helps calm down the customer. People call wondering what is taking so long for their delivery or that their pizza is not cooked the way they liked it. The best thing for an employee to do is to apologize for the inconvenience and accommodate them. When a delivery is taking longer than expected, it is always best to say that the person is on their way and to get them out of the door as soon as possible. When an order is messed up, the best thing to do is to tell customers they can come back and that it will be fixed for free or their name and number can be written down. The next time they come in, they can get an item of their choice for free. Showing compassion for customers is one of the most positive ways to keep constant revenue. Stereotypes in a pizzeria are a lot more common than most people think. People walk in and expect everyone that works there to be Italian, which no one is. The owner Louie is actually from Montenegro, which is a country in Europe near Turkey. Also, Izzy is from Mexico. People that work at Louies get offended when people come in and ask, Oh, youre not Italian? It is offensive to those who work there. They prove the stereotype wrong by showing that good Italian food and pizza does not need to be made by an Italian. Louies has some of the best pizza in the area and it is an affordable price. Since Louies Pizza is like a second family, it makes all of the employees love coming to work. The overall family-like atmosphere brings everyone closer together which results in the

Waldor 6 best work environment. Besides all the little arguments and nonsense that goes on, everyone loves coming into Louies. Not only are the employees treated like family, but the customers are too. Coming to work at Louies Pizza is like coming to work at ones home away from home. As one can see, a pizzeria is a much more complicated discourse community than one would think. A lot of complex details are involved and take time to develop a full understanding. Such details include the language used between one another, adapting to the environment, and attempting to achieve the common goal of making the pizzeria successful. Pizzerias should not only be referred to as a community, but also as a family. Whenever visiting New Jersey make sure to stop by Louies Pizza in Great Meadows.

Waldor 7 Works Cited Djecbtric, Louie. Personal interview. 6 Nov. 2013. Hernandez, Israel. Personal interview. 6 Nov. 2013. Monk, Sara. Personal Interview. 6 Nov. 2013.