Vincent DePhilippis was born in New York, but spent his youth in Naples, Italy. After returning to New York at 18, Vincent met Madeleine Manfredi. They settled in Westchester, Pa. after marrying in 1925. In 1947, the two moved to San Diego, and three years later, the pair opened Cash & Carry Italian Foods on India Street.

Cash & Carry Italian Foods eventually became a part of the family’s first restaurant location of Filippi’s Pizza Grotto. It is still a bustling and successful pizza place in Little Italy, with both the original market and a restaurant attached.