GREENFIELD — After nearly 50 years in the Balis family, Village Pizza is changing hands.
“We will miss, very much, the customers,” said Betty Gioules, who co-owns the restaurant on Bank Row with her brother, Chris Balis. “They’re like family to us. That’s heartbreaking for me.”
Balis echoed the sentiment of his sister.
“There is no better community,” Balis said. “I came here in ’76 with my mother and my sister and my brother. My father was here prior to us. When we came here, they accepted us and welcomed us with open arms, and they haven’t stopped.”
In the face of declining health, however, Balis, who has worked in the pizza place at 42 Bank Row since he was 12 years old, said he decided with his family it was time to sell.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” he said.
At the start of the new year, Walter Pacheco and his family will take over, according to Balis. The new owner will retain the Village Pizza name, which it has had since it was first opened by different owners in 1961, and there will be no changes to the menu. Balis said Pacheco, who has 34 years of experience in the industry, will work closely with his sister and his wife, Petroula Balis, to learn the family recipes the community has grown to love.
“It’s been successful and people have come to expect certain standards,” Balis said. “It might sound cliche … but a lot of our customers, they’re not just customers.”
Balis explained that his father, George Balis, arrived from Greece in the United States in the 1960s. He worked for almost a decade before buying Village Pizza in 1974. Two years later, his wife and three children — Betty, John and Chris — joined him in Franklin County.
After about 15 years running the business, George Balis passed the business down to his children.
“We’ve served like three generations of the same family,” he said. “We’ve made some great, great friendships. That was the most difficult part of our decision.”
Along with pizza, subs and grinders, the restaurant offers mozzarella sticks, buffalo wings and salads, among other offerings. A few years ago, the business overhauled and remodeled its seating area, adding televisions and sprucing things up. Last year, the restaurant celebrated 60 years in the community.
“From my parents to us and then to my children, all our children have worked (at Village Pizza) at one time or another,” Balis said. Balis’ son George Balis works there, as does Betty’s son, George Gioules.
Once the decision was made to sell, Balis said the family fielded several inquiries. It was important to them, however, that the business was turned over to somebody who was “the right fit.” Pacheco, he said, was introduced to him through a mutual friend.
“He’s a man of integrity,” Balis said. “We wouldn’t just sell it to anybody. We wanted to make sure the place would be kept the way it is.”
Pacheco, a Belchertown resident, said he is part of a hospitality group that looks to purchase local institutions. He also owns Antonio’s Pizza, which has locations in Amherst, Belchertown, Easthampton and Worcester, as well as in Rhode Island.
“There’s very little that needs to be done,” he said of Village Pizza. “They’ve done a great job … This is keeping what they’ve done for 50-plus years.”
Pacheco said he anticipates looking to hire some additional help, but otherwise, the food and service will remain as they always have.
“I love their pizza,” he said. “I love their family and what they’ve done for the area.”
Gioules said that after years of seeing familiar faces and knowing the orders of most people who came into the restaurant, she is sad to let go. She said she hopes the community will support Pacheco and his family.
“I want to thank Greenfield for their support … in good times and in bad,” she said. “Even with COVID, people waited outside in lines, all the way up to (City Hall).”
Balis added that as they closes this chapter of their life, he wants the community to know “we’re not going anywhere.”
“Greenfield is our home,” he said.
Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne.