The mysterious history of the Campisi family in America begins back in 1904, when my great-grandparents, Carlo “Papa” and Antonia Campisi, immigrated from Sicily to New Orleans. They settled in Dallas thanks to a telegram from a cousin who wrote of a grocery store for sale for $800. Soon after, Papa was in the grocery business at the corner of Hall Street and Central Expressway (formerly the Central tracks). In an apartment above the store, my great-grandparents had six kids (four girls and two boys), who helped by working and translating in the store.
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our history campisi's history joe campisiIn 1946, with the end of World War II, Papa purchased a bar with a small kitchen in the back at the corner of Knox and McKinney called the Idle Hour. A cousin visiting from New York suggested they serve “Pizza Pies” which were so popular in New York. So, Papa gathered his family in the kitchen to create Dallas’ first pizza, as well as Texas’ first pizzeria. My grandfather Joe and my great uncle Sam were always on hand promoting their pizza pies to all their patrons.