At 70, Osso’s embraces change by serving lunchtime crowds
Rick Shrum/Observer-Reporter
Every day is pie day at Osso’s Original Pizza, where, from left, Dave Hasson, Mindy Earliwine, Lisa Osso Hasson and Tim Junkins are at your service.
Owner Lisa Osso Hasson handles the register on the second day of her shop’s transition to earlier hours.
Rick Shrum/ Observer-Reporter
Rick Shrum/Observer-Reporter
Tim Junkins prepares Osso’s signature square pizza slices for pickup.
Rick Shrum/Observer-Reporter
Dave Hasson prepares a pizza for the oven at Osso’s in January 2020.
Alfred Osso, an Italian immigrant, opened a pizza shop in Washington in 1950. He operated it by following a simple but steadfast guideline that, in his fractured English, went: “If it’s not a broke, don’t fix it.”
His children adhered to that philosophy when they later ran the establishment, as do the late founder’s grandkids today.
In other words, if you have a winning formula, don’t change. Keep making those square pizza slices at the top of Henderson Avenue, keep making those sandwiches, keep using that sauce and keep making people happy from late afternoon to late-night close.
Over the past couple of years, however, the third generation of this family endeavor did contemplate a significant change. Instead of opening at 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, they would strive to make people happy earlier in the day. Cater to the luncheon crowd, some of whom were Osso’s aficionados.
“We had been thinking about it, but we weren’t sure how this would go,” said Lisa Osso Hasson, Alfredo’s granddaughter and the current owner.
They are now finding out, and early returns are favorable.
The brain trust at Osso’s Original Pizza – Lisa, her husband, Dave, and her sister, Mindy Earliwine – shed their reluctance a month ago and decided to open at 11 a.m. on weekdays. They did so for the first time Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and were gratified by the response.
“Monday was a pretty good day,” Lisa said Tuesday morning.
Days two and three, likewise, were pretty good, with a steady flow of customers, many of them regulars, she said.
Nothing, actually, may have been broken at the shop, but this “fix” may prove to be more of an advantageous tweak.
In its 70th year, Osso’s remains a popular takeout spot for locals, a successful shop in a deep sea of pizza competition. The restaurant, which is open every day, has a core of five employees plus a small crew of younger workers that is handling the expanded, 70-hours-a-week operation.
There was a public demand for earlier hours, yet it apparently was more pervasive than the owner, the manager, Mindy, and the do-it-all-guy, Dave, envisioned.
“We did a Facebook launch and got all positive responses,” Dave said, adding there were more than 21,000 views.
“I didn’t think there were 21,000 people who knew us,” Lisa countered.
“The feedback was all good,” she added. “People are saying they’ve wanted this for years.”
A Washington woman, who identified herself only as Sandy, is among them. She was pleased to be placing an order Tuesday – before noon.
“We love their sauce,” she said. “We’re so glad they’re open early. My husband and I love it.”
All three Osso family members were multi-tasking Tuesday, frequently nonstop. Lisa and Mindy took turns at a busy register; Dave ladled sauce on the pies and fed them into the ovens; and each of them assisted Tim Junkins in applying cheese, extra cheese and/or toppings. They made sandwiches and subs, too. It was a hot time on a frigid day, warmed by interaction with friendly customers.
The family name – pronounced “oh so” – is readily recognizable in Washington thanks to the shop, which sits in the northwest section of the city. Jefferson Avenue is Osso’s fourth location, all within city limits.
Alfred started the business in the basement of a building at the intersection of Jefferson and Woodland Avenue, near the family home. He sold subs, homemade ice cream and a fairly new innovation – pizza. Alfred had become familiar with the sauce-covered pie when, while working at a plant in New York City, he read a magazine article about it and brought the idea back home.
Initially, however, he wasn’t convinced pizza was more than a pie-in-the-sky venture and wanted to see how it fared against a wildly popular sport of that time.
“He had two pool tables and a pizza oven and said he’d go with the business that took off,” Dave Hasson said.
Pizza prevailed.
Osso’s would relocate three times, all to buildings within the city: to South Main Street; to Murtland Avenue (the property was destroyed by fire); and, finally, to Jefferson, next to the family residence. Alfred was still in charge, and to create parking space, his son Sam ultimately leveled the structure. That location proved to be a favorite during the city’s industrial heyday.
“We used to be busy until midnight, then grandpa would stay later for workers ending their shift at the steel mill,” Earliwine said. “The Brownson House would have football jamborees and everyone would walk here afterward. Nights were good, now not too many people are out at that time.”
Her father, Sam, became owner in the mid-1980s and stayed with his father’s mindset: “If it’s not a broke …”
“Sam always said, ‘When we were open for lunch, it was not worth doing,'” Dave Hasson recalled. Then, reflecting on the passage of time, he added: “People used to take a lunch pail and a thermos with them. Now many of them eat out.”
Lisa has since taken over from her father, who is 87 and living in Washington.
In addition to making pizzas onsite, Osso’s sells them in frozen vacuum-packed six-packs and frozen trays of 28 slices to take home to bake. Management also is giving thought to bringing back pasta dishes.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday; 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday; and 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.
The times have changed with changing times, but otherwise, Osso’s doesn’t plan to fix anything else.