Late Night Pizza will be no more

by Jess Ferrari
FOR THE POST

For everyone who enjoyed ordering Late Night Pizza at 4:30 a.m., it is a sad time.

Late Night Pizza, 122 W. Union St., has closed its doors and its West Union Street buggy location, owner Michael Kleinman said. But it will continue to sell some of its specialty pizzas as frozen pizzas.

Though some varieties of pizzas still are available, many students will miss the delivery service.

"I am very disappointed because it was one of my favorite pizza places," Ohio University junior Alyssa Jerzyk said.

Kleinman said there were a variety of reasons for closing, but two factors weighed heavier than others.

One was that it was a very difficult business to run, he said. Late night was open until 5:00 a.m. daily and, at its peak, had 45 employees.

"Managing 45 part-time students (employees) was very demanding," Kleinman said.

Another factor was the recent influx of food establishments in Athens, bringing profits down, he said. Many of these are chain-run, such as Domino's Pizza, 12 Mill St.

Chain-run businesses have an advantage over smaller local run businesses because people tend to go with something they already know, Kleinman said.

"Eventually small businesses will be wiped out by big businesses and, especially in the food industry, the result will be a mediocrity of product and high quality will be obsolete," he said.

Linda Lee, a manager at Domino's, said she felt being a chain does help because people, especially visitors recognize the name.

But being a locally-owned pizza store also can be an advantage, said Nikki Krivanek, manager of Courtside Pizza, 5 N. Court St. Ohio University students get frustrated with the long waits that sometimes come with chain-run stores, she said.

Though patrons no longer can order Late Night Pizza, they still can purchase some of the specialty pizzas as frozen pizzas, Kleinman said. Three specialty pizzas, Twice Baked Potato, Artichoke Parmesan and the Incredible Spinach, are available at Farmacy Natural Food Store, 28 W. Stimson Ave.