Today we’d like to introduce you to Shelley Scanzaroli.
Hi Shelley, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My family took over Filippo’s Italian Specialties almost 2 years ago. This deli has been in the same spot in Wheaton for 70 years and has always been family owned. My family is the latest to own this gem of a spot. My Nonna found this place when the Italian Deli she had been using in Washington, D.C. closed and our family have been loyal customers ever since. The previous owner has known me personally since I was a toddler. When our family discovered that Filippo was interested in selling, we had joked about the possibility of looking into it but didn’t really think much about it after the initial announcement in Summer 2022. However, in November, my best friend and I had recently returned from a month long trip to Italy and I stopped in to see if Filippo was selling some new favorites we had discovered on this trip. I wasn’t sure what I was going to find….if the deli would still be there, if it was sold, if it was open that day, etc. I came inside and was greeted by Filippo. He hadn’t seen me in a long while and was excited to see me back in here. I mentioned I wasn’t sure if he had sold or not yet and he said that he hadn’t really gotten any offers he was willing to entertain as of yet. I joked about being interested and before I knew it, we had a meeting set up within a couple weeks. Our family ended up purchasing the deli and took over in November of 2023.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Luckily we’ve had the assistance of the previous owner, Filippo Leo with this endeavor. We’ve had struggles, but nothing out of the ordinary…one of the toughest struggles we’ve had is with people who have insisted that the deli was closed due to various reasons….social media has plenty of them! We also have somewhat of a visibility problem, but as we’ve been here in this location serving the best subs since 1955, a lot of people know where we are….now it’s just making sure the newer generations moving in can find us!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
We’ve been here since 1955 serving quality food and selling quality groceries. People come to us because we’ve earned the trust of the Wheaton (& surrounding areas) community and that is something we definitely don’t want to lose. Many people decide to take over an existing business and automatically start making changes. That’s not the way we did/do things here. This place has been an institution in this area and there is no sense in making changes when things work! We all know that everyone wants to make their mark but sometimes, you have to wait for the right moment. I’ve never been a fan of waste so one of the things I’ve been trying to make an effort to do is create new menu items from things we already sell or have. For example, we’ve started using the daily bread to make our own frozen garlic bread as well as Italian style croutons. Another new item is the Cassio sub, named after the town my great grandmother came from. It is essentially an Italian version of a classic club sandwich and has become extremely popular with the customers. Things like that are ways to make your mark without having to change everything else.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
I used to love being in the kitchen with my Nonna and I remember making ravioli and making gnocchi on the kitchen counters starting with dough and that night having the most delicious food!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://filipposdeli.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filipposdeli?igsh=Z2pkODY3dXdhdjZk&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FilipposDeli/?_rdr
