March 9, 10 and 11 will be an even greater time to order some pizza from Krony’s and celebrate. Both locations – at 500 Hamlin-Clarkson Townline Road in Hamlin and 2139 North Union Street (Barefoot Landing Plaza) in Spencerport – are celebrating 20 years since the opening of the Spencerport location with a roll-back of prices to those of twenty years ago.
Mark Kronenberg – the name “Krony’s” comes from his nickname, Krony – founded the business in the early 1980s and has done the price roll-back before to celebrate anniversaries.
Customers loved it, he says. “We had a crazy response … we had a lot of fun.”
He remembers a plain large pizza was $6.95 back in the early days of the business.
Mark, who has worked in the restaurant business for 50 years, observes the longevity of Krony’s is testimony to how good the products are. “We do it the old-fashioned way,” he says, “the dough and sauce are made from scratch, we use the best tomatoes.”
The pizzas are hearth-baked and fresh dough is made daily.
In addition to pizza, Krony’s menu features a long list of items including munchies, specialty sandwiches, hot and cold subs, salads, soups and Krony “Stromboni.”
The Spencerport location offers draft beer (growlers to go) and wine by the glass. Hamlin offers soft serve ice cream in season.
One unique aspect of the business is that Krony’s doesn’t deliver. “We are dinosaurs,” Mark readily admits, but explains that “… with delivery, you don’t see the people.” For Mark, personal interaction with his customers is top priority. Orders are made on a first name basis, “We don’t take last names,” he says.
And no delivery doesn’t mean not convenient. The Hamlin location has a drive- thru. “It helps tremendously,” Mark says. “People with cell phones call on the way home. They don’t have to get the kids out of the car. It’s convenient.”
Krony’s decades-long success is also evident in its long-time staff. Mark says he’s had the same manager for 31 years and some employees for more than 20 years.
Young people and students form a major part of his work force and Mark says he especially enjoys them. Some who have started their careers with him over the years have gone on to own their own restaurants. One is a top chef in Seattle, another is in Washington, D.C., Mark says. “It’s fun; the kids are the best.” Mark has ten full-time employees – 20 to 30 high school and college students work for him.
Steve Enos owns the Spencerport location. He began working for Mark at Krony’s while a teenager (Mark remembers him coming in to play video games even before that). He spent a few years working at Wegmans and another restaurant, but in 1993 decided he wanted to open his own place. “I got hold of Mark and opened under his name and recipes,” Steve says.
The Spencerport location is just as personable as the Hamlin location. “Eighty percent of the people who walk in, I’ll know their first name,” Steve says. “I’m always up at the front. I try to be the face of the business. We’ve got some people who’ve been coming every week since the day we opened. It’s a great feeling.”
Just as with Mark, Steve says employee turnover is low, meaning the staff knows their customers well.
Steve says he also enjoys working with young people as well as his adult staff. “Some come at age 14 or 15 and work here until college or after,” he says.
The longevity of Krony’s speaks for itself, Steve observes. “The pizza we serve is the best … we have wine, Mark does ice cream … the variety is there. A lot of love goes into it. I want you to be happy.”
For more details see the Krony’s ad in this newspaper.
