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Although one of Central Ohio’s favorite pizzerias no longer resides in this building, perhaps it can be one of Central Ohio’s favorite coffee shops.

Little Italy Ristorante left their space at 619 Main St. in Groveport to move to 480 Main St., and their old space has been sitting empty since 2023.

Main Ground Coffee has opened at 619 Main Street in Groveport, serving up handcrafted drinks in a space that blends nearly 60 years of family history with a bold new vision for community connection.

A space that was home to a Central Ohio pizzeria for decades is serving up something new.
When Little Italy Ristorante in Groveport relocated from 619 Main St. to a new space at 480 Main St. in 2023, it left that older space free.

Avery Ward didn’t have a lot of interest in running the family business, Little Italy Ristorante in Groveport, Ohio. His grandparents, Chuck and Janet Ward, had opened the pizzeria in 1979, and Ward had watched his dad, Nick, work the business his whole life.
Ward was busy at his dream job at Apple when fate intervened. In 2015, his father suffered a brain aneurysm. According to Ward, he was suddenly faced with few options. Selling the business was not one of them: His grandparents wouldn’t go for that. He could let the business go bankrupt or shut it down, but again, his family had other ideas.

Columbus, OH is lovingly known as Discovery City for good reason. Ohio’s capital is bursting with rich culture, innovative arts, breathtaking outdoor gems, and many more local attractions that put this city on the map. With so many unique things to do in Columbus, we asked local experts for help finding the must-sees you need to seek out when exploring this Midwestern town.

In the Season 2 premiere of Heroes of Hospitality, Matt Plapp and David Scott Peters travel to Columbus, Ohio, to meet Avery, a third-generation restaurant owner who transformed a struggling $500K pizzeria into a $5 million powerhouse using restaurant systems, scalable leadership, and smart storytelling. Avery is a standout example of independent restaurant success. After walking away from a promising tech career at Apple, he took over his family’s business and quickly realized that hustle alone wasn’t enough.

Running a restaurant requires a strong team, but trusting your team can sometimes be another challenge. In this episode of The Pre-Shift Podcast, we sat down with Avery Ward, CEO of Little Italy Ristorante, to discuss the art of delegation—including when to lean on your team, how to do it strategically, and why it all matters.

Little Italy Ristorante (all over central Ohio) Pizza party on wheels! Their brick-and-mortar location in Groveport has been serving authentic Italian fare since 1979, and the food truck brings that same deliciousness to you. Start with the fried cheese ravioli. Then go for a large pepperoni pizza (or at least a slice or two), made with a rich sauce, gooey cheese, and a perfectly crisp crust.

Avery Ward, owner of Little Italy Ristorante in Groveport, Ohio, knows that digital marketing doesn’t mean just one thing; it means a lot of things. In fact, you could say it means everything—at least when it comes to boosting the success of his pizza restaurant, situated in a town of less than 6,000.
Ward, who’s only 27 years old, knows his customers are living in the digital age, and he’s happy to meet them there. Whether using gamification in his loyalty program or creating avid engagement on Facebook through two-way storytelling, Ward prioritizes digital intelligence. Here are seven of his most successful strategies to keep business booming.

Family Pies
When Chuck and Janet Ward dropped by a grocery store on a long drive, they never imagined this pit stop would change the trajectory of their lives. But a four-hour conversation with the owner turned into a trip to the bank, and that same day they were the proud owners of Chuck’s Little Giant in Groveport, OH.
Straight away, they embedded themselves into the community. Since they lived next to their business, they often sent customers home with handmade pasta and meatballs. When the opportunity came up to buy a pizza place down the street, it was a no-brainer.
Soon, a large grocery chain moved in, and they made the decision to convert their market into Little Italy Pizza. They passed the restaurant down to their son, Nick, in the early ’80s.

Recently, Shipday’s CEO, Moin Islam, sat down on the Digital Hospitality Roadshow with one of these business owners, Avery Ward, a pizzeria owner in Groveport, Ohio.

On this episode of America’s Best Restaurants, Jacalyn Mains is stopping by Little Italy Ristorante in Groveport, Ohio, to try out the Hot Honey Zinger Pizza!

In 1966, a Groveport grocery store realized they had something special going on when they tried their hand at making some pizzas. Then, in the 1979, the owners, Chuck and Janet Ward, decided to transition to a pizza business. Now, in 2023, they’re a full Italian restaurant, and considered the best in Central Ohio, according to The Ohio Restaurant Association.

Jeff Wohlfarth is known to be the “glue” of the Little Italy Ristorante community.

Wohlfarth, a kitchen team member at the business for 26 years, experiences a disability and has been completely adopted by the restaurant’s staff. His primary caretaker recently passed away and the restaurant’s owners have become Wohlfarth’s legal guardians.

Little Italy in Groveport has been serving up Columbus-style pies since 1979, and until recently, out of the same storefront.

The pizzeria ended up moving to a new and improved location, that’s located in Groveport, earlier this year. We stopped by for a quick peek to show you inside.

Did we mention Little Italy also added an ice cream scoop shop to the space?

After operating in its original location for 44 years, Little Italy Ristorante in Groveport briefly closed before reopening in a new location nearby.

Now located at 480 Main St., the family-owned Italian restaurant reopened on Feb. 12.

Little Italy Ristorante moved into a brand new Groveport building a couple blocks away from their old location. This video has footage from the final weekend at their former location and looks at constructing their new home.

More than 50 years ago, Chuck and Janet Ward took out an $18,000 loan to buy a Groveport grocery store at 619 Main Street that came with a house right next to it, renaming the store Chuck’s Little Giant.

Nearby was a small pizza shop they purchased as well that they renamed Little Italy Pizza. In 1979, sales at the grocery store were declining while the pizza restaurant continued to see success so they turned the bigger grocery store building into the new home of Little Italy Pizza.

Forty-four years later, that original building is making way for an expanded new home for the restaurant.

Let's head on over to Little Italy Pizza in Groveport Ohio and join Avery, the owner who is spicing things up with his delicious slices of pizza! Not only does he have one of the most mouth-watering pizzas around town - but get this: He has started implementing a new catering strategy that's helping him reach bigger and better corporate clients.

We'll chat business, try out some amazing meatballs prepared by our host himself & take a peek at his new location while we're there! Get ready for an epic journey because something tells me this won't be our last visit to see Avery & Little Italy Pizzeria...

After operating at 619 Main St. in Groveport since 1979, Littly Italy Pizza is ready for an upgrade.

Soon, the long-standing pizzeria will move several blocks west to its new home in the Wert’s Grove Building, which is located at 490 Main St.

According to Operations Manager Avery Ward, the process should be a “smooth transition” with little downtime. The original location currently remains open, and Ward believes the pizzeria will only need to close for approximately a week before opening the new storefront.

Featured on the SnipingForDom TikTok channel

At over 54,000 members strong, the Pizza Connoisseurs of Columbus has become—more than just a Facebook group—a touchstone for Central Ohio foodies.

So when they name the best pizza in the City, we listen.

A decades-old Central Ohio pizza shop is getting a new home.
Groveport’s Little Italy is moving from the space it has occupied for 43 years at 619 Main St. a few blocks away to the new Wert’s Grove building in the city’s downtown at 480 Main St.

Geography plays a critical role in pizza consumption and ideation. Water buffalos found their way to South Central Italy in the seventh century, but it took until the 12th century for a new style of cheese made with their milk called Mozzarella di Bufala Campana to become a favored staple in the region. The tomato arrived in Italy around 1548 but did not transform into an accepted staple food in the region surrounding Naples until the 1800s. Them BAM! Like the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup commercials of the 1970s, two great tastes that go great together – mozzarella paired with tomatoes transformed into sauce – became the core ingredients for the pizza created in Naples, Italy.

According to Little Italy’s Operations Manager Avery Ward, the longstanding neighborhood spot will be moving several blocks west of its current location to the Wert’s Grove Building, located at 490 Main St.

The new pizzeria, slated to featured an abundance of natural light and modern design elements, will occupy the entire first floor of the building. It will also contain a full bar, and the pizzeria plans to introduce new menu items, like hand-dipped ice cream.

Residents of Groveport got a surprise on Monday night when police came to their door with pizza. A fundraiser for the local police department Little Italy located at 619 Main Street in Groveport Ohio came up with a fun fundraiser called PoPoroni pizza night. With aid from the local police, 10% of your order to the Groveport Madison Human Needs a local organization that helps families in our area through difficult times.

“THIS BOX CONTAINS MORE THAN JUST A PIZZA” is printed prominently on the branded cardboard boxes used by Little Italy Pizza. Because the message is figurative — the boxes literally just contain pizzas — an explanation for it is supplied, in a more modest type, via a brief history of the long-beloved neighborhood eatery.

You can get more than just a good pizza from this long-standing Groveport favorite

When Avery Ward's grandparents started the family business, it was a grocery store. Chuck and Janet Ward opened Chuck's Little Giant grocery on Main Street in Groveport in 1966.

The store flourished and the couple bought the building where it was located. When Chuck Ward saw chain grocery stores taking hold in central Ohio during the late 1970s, he decided to pursue something else.