When George Lagiorgia and his wife, Antonina Libertella, opened their very first Jacques Cartier Pizza restaurant on Chemin de Chambly in Longueuil, Quebec, back in 1968, little did they know how much their small business would evolve. After all, there was nothing unusual about a family-run business, given they formed the backbone of many Quebec neighbourhoods.
Today the business has grown into an institution on Montreal’s South Shore and, like many other family-run operations, has been the result of determination and sheer hard work over the intervening years.
This isn’t altogether surprising, due to a long-held commitment to quality and consistency – a quality and consistency that saw the business grow as word soon spread through the city with customers lining up to taste a Jacques Cartier pizza. In 1978 the branch on Curé-Poirier West opened its doors with two more – in the city of Saint-Hubert and another on Saint-Charles Street in Longueuil – eventually coming in 1983.
If expansion was on the menu George Lagiorgia never lost sight of the need to keep family values at the forefront.
In fact, the intervening years have seen the business become an important part of everyday life, whether it’s from Friday-night dinners to post- hockey-game traditions.
But all businesses face defining moments of course – none more so, in the case of Jacques Cartier Pizza, than when George Lagiorgia passed away in 2008. As a result, the family had a decision to make. Would they close the business’s doors for good, or would they carry George’s legacy forward together.
They chose legacy and in 2009 opened a new location at 1215 Chemin du Tremblay. In short order additional branches opened in Brossard, La Prairie, and Sainte-Julie, allowing the family to better serve loyal customers across the South Shore. Today, the business is managed by George’s children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Meanwhile, to meet further growing demand upcoming Châteauguay and Boucherville branches will soon be welcomed into the family.
In an era of rapid change and large corporate chains, Jacques Cartier Pizza remains a testament to what can be built when family, tradition, and community come first, one slice at a time.
This article comes courtesy of Jacques Cartier Pizza, a proudly family-owned business that has been serving the South Shore of Montreal since 1968. Built on tradition, quality and community, Jacques Cartier Pizza continues to grow while staying true to the family values that have defined its success for nearly six decades.
