Zack Yost, known as “Champ,” spends seven days a week at his store, working to ensure that Champ’s Pizzeria & Fish Fry gets the food right the first time around and has the freedom to experiment with new recipes.

Yost is the sole owner of the shop on West Genesee Street, which opened in late December. Ever since Champ’s opened its doors, Yost has been working hard at making his place noteworthy.

He’s not worried about advertising — the great food and service at his restaurant will get people in the door, he said.

“I control my market, and I like that. The flexibility makes a huge difference,” Yost said. “I can control my business my way, meaning we can be innovative here all the time.”

The shop recently made fried dough dusted with brown sugar cinnamon. The concoction flew out the door, Yost said.

Customers can also choose more traditional items, including an assortment of wings, calzones and, of course, pizza. The shop also has fish specials every Friday.

But the customer service is what keeps the restaurant going, Yost said. Without the customers, there is no business. To him, it’s “90 percent service and 10 percent food.”

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Daniel Block, an employee at Champ’s, agrees. Block wears many hats: He’s a delivery driver, sauce maker and fish fryer. To him, the fast-paced atmosphere and the ability to attend to customers’ requests make the job enjoyable.

“We have to pay attention to details around here,” Block said. “Things move quick, and we want to get every step right. Plus, we try to tailor the way we make the orders based on what the customers ask, and there’s usually lots of requests.”

Yost does not have a huge team — only about 10 employees — but they get the job done even with the floods of calls to the shop every day, he said. He said he enjoys the place as is and plans on keeping the restaurant staff manageable while being able to stay hands-on.

Thandar Zone, an economics major in the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University, said she likes Champ’s mom and pop style.

“I feel more personality comes out of their food because they’re typically more intimate. Plus, they seem to have a warmer setting,” she said.

She added that the ingredients it uses makes the shop unique.

“If a shop goes out of their way or spends time and effort to hand-pick what they put in their food, I feel it gets reciprocated.”

As the restaurant continues to establish itself, Yost sees it as an opportunity to provide support to the surrounding community. In the years to come, he hopes to open a couple more pizzerias. But for now, he’s focused on the success of his location on the city’s Westside.

“All I ask is (that) people give us a shot,” Yost said. “Most places really only get one shot, and I’m trying to reach the moon with this place, and right now we’re at the stars.”

Published on March 4, 2018 at 10:21 pm

Contact Leah: ltoney@syr.edu