Coppola’s Pizzaria owner Luke Andriaccio prepares a pizza. Andriaccio plans on selling his shop in the wake of his Marco Rosso’s Italian Sauces garnering national success. P-J photo by Eric Zavinski

The success of Marco Rosso’s has allowed Andriaccio the chance to sell his pizzaria and focus on the sales of his trademark sauces.

“It’s 10 years of success based on this sauce,” said Andriaccio, who wants to now offer his product to the nation. “We’re going to take the market by storm.”

Part of what will make Marco Rosso’s sauces a hit elsewhere will be its unique packaging. Instead of being stored in small metal cans like most pizza sauces are, Marco Rosso’s pizza sauces will be distributed in five gallon pails, allowing for the ease of pouring. Each pail will have a ziptie and a spigot, so workers can have a choice between pouring different volumes of sauce if needed.

“It’s five gallons of sauce ready to go,” Andriaccio said.

The three types of Marco Rosso’s Italian Sauces—pizza, pasta and spaghetti sauce—will be distributed nationally to various restaurants. Proprietor Luke Andriaccio named the sauce after his middle name and the Italian word for “red,” which also symbolizes his red-headed wife and two boys. P-J photo by Eric Zavinski

He noted that not only is it easy to use, but it is also prepared for taste purposes. Some sauces come out as simply a tomato base or puree. Marco Rosso’s is fully flavored with the typical ingredients of oregano, black pepper, parmesan cheese, bacon and more.

“How much, I would never tell,” said Andriaccio, who is proud of his original sauce recipe.

Andriaccio says other pizzarias are welcome to add other ingredients, but if they want to propel their business’s success with the original Marco Rosso’s sauce, they are welcome to.

“It’s an exclusive taste with a unique packaging,” Andriaccio said.

Pasta sauce will be distributed in four 1 gallon jugs, which should also remove the hassle of opening smaller containers with a can opener. Marco Rosso’s pasta sauce is versatile; it can be used with calzones, lasagna, breadsticks and other Italian dishes.

“Now people can build their business around the same product,” Andriaccio said.

Coppola’s Pizzaria recently celebrated its 10th anniversary May 22, and Andriaccio says the sauces are the backbone of that legacy.

“We already have people well-beyond this general area who are interested (in Marco Rosso’s),” Andriaccio said.

Andriaccio said he has clients who are interested in the midwest and the big cities in Ohio, namely Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati he said.

One pizzaria is waiting to print their menus since they plan on using Marco Rosso’s sauces.

The sauces are made and distributed out of Lanovara Specialty Foods in Rochester. Lanovara are even offering restaurants to return used containers of the sauces, so they can be cleaned and reused.

Before this national venture, Marco Rosso’s sauces were sold on a regional basis which will continue. Marco Rosso’s sauces can be found in local Wegmans, Bemus Point Market, Farm Fresh Foods, Lighthouse Point Grocery and Save-A-Lot.

US Foods will be in charge of distributing Marco Rosso’s sauces to restaurants.

“It’s exciting we’re going with them,” Andriaccio said.

Beyond the commercial side of things, Andriaccio’s retail products are getting a makeover. New labels will include a lasagna recipe on the pasta sauce jars and pizza dough recipe on the pizza sauce jars.

Andriaccio says he will miss “working with the customers and interacting with the public” after he sells Coppola’s Pizzaria. Realtor Hanna Soffel Briggs will be vetting possible buyers of the pizzaria for it to be in good hands after Andriaccio moves on to focus on his sauce business.

The business, originally branded as Coppola’s Italian Sauces, has come a long way from being sent a cease and desist order from film director Francis Ford Coppola for naming the sauces after the pizzaria, which the director’s lawyer argued was a trademark infringement even though Coppola’s was named after Andriaccio’s grandmother.

Marco Rosso’s, the current branding, is taken from Andriaccio’s middle name and the Italian word for “red,” which also represents his red-headed family: his wife, Grace, and his two sons, Lucas Jr. and Robert.