An Italian-American family that tried for years to buy an empty restaurant near home is preparing to open Antonio’s Pizzeria in Gautier, MS. Now the owners of that restaurant at 2120 Ladnier Road, just off U.S. 90, are renovating it inside and out, with “a sit down, homey feel,” said Antonio Palazzolo. The hope to open in early June, he said.

They make their own pizza and spaghetti sauces that are as Italian as it gets, and their own pizza dough. Palazzolo was born in Sicily and lived in Italy for the first 8-9 years of his life. Vito and Pina Palazzolo moved the family to Brooklyn for a couple of years and then settled in Northeast Pennsylvania for 8-9 years, where they bought their first pizza restaurant.