Happy Thanksgiving Wednesday • November 26, 2025
Rico’s Pizza in Lansing celebrates a half-century in business
Rico’s Pizza is open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4 to 11 p.m. The pizzeria is closed on Mondays. They offer carry-out and delivery. Photo: Carrie Steinweg, The Lansing Journal _______________________________
Jasmine Arnold holds a freshly made pizza, wrapped in the traditional paper wrap rather than a box. Photo: Carrie Steinweg, The Lansing Journal _______________________________
By Carrie Steinweg The Lansing Journal LANSING, Ill. — Fifty years ago, Phil DeRico was looking for a career change. On a visit to Party Tap in December 1975, an opportunity presented itself. “He always had a love and focus on family and friends in his life,” said owner Debbie Pluard. “He met with a friend at Party Lounge — at the corner of State Line Avenue and Ridge Road — and while having a beer, he met the owners of the lounge. They offered him the opportunity to bring in some food for them to try. That’s when Rico’s was born.” Soon he was making pizza and sandwiches in the basement, offering carry-out, delivery and table service to patrons at the lounge. There were only five pizza topping options at the time — sausage, mushrooms, green peppers, onions and anchovies. A New Era of Ownership In 1982, Rico’s moved just a few doors down to 3651 Ridge Road. Debbie Pluard began working at the carryout/delivery location in 1984 and became good friends with Phil’s youngest daughter, Sarah. “She was always like my little sister,” she said. In August 2001, the business changed hands — to Pluard and her husband, Mike. Although the family business didn’t continue with family by blood, Pluard considered the DeRico family to be like her own family. She and her husband still own the business today and she can be found in the kitchen manning the ovens — sliding pizzas off of a pizza peel, shuffling pies around as they cook and shifting them to the packing counter once they’ve reached the correct level of doneness (some customers ask for a little extra cooking time). Customer Favorites While the most common pizza ingredient around the country is pepperoni, sausage reigns in the Chicago area. It’s an even split at Rico’s for most popular ingredient. “Our customers love sausage or pepperoni an any combination,” said Pluard. “They also enjoy our spicy sauce. The sauce has crushed red pepper in it. Cooking mellows out the heat of the pepper, so the sauce has a nice heat kick to it.” Aside from pizza, the menu includes pastas, salads and hot and cold sandwiches. Pluard said that as far as hot sandwiches, their biggest seller is the Italian beef. On the cold side, it’s the Super Sub. “These are two of our original sandwiches,” she said, noting that they still use Phil’s original recipes. Feeding and Employing Generations “I enjoy the people I work along side and our customers,” said Pluard. “My co-workers become like family. Just like any family, we laugh together and become annoyed with each other. At the end of the day, we have enjoyed our time together.” She’s also had the chance to see employees mature from teenagers into adults with their own families. “We have watched many of our younger employees graduate from high school, college and trade school. They have gone on to have successful careers and many of them have their own families. Our customers are our extended family,” said Pluard. “We have watched their children grow up and become customers. Some of their children have become our employees.” Then and Now Five decades after Phil DeRico served his first
Rico’s Pizza offers a variety of toppings, all on a thin crust. Photo: Carrie Steinweg, The Lansing Journal _______________________________
customer, his values and his recipes live on. DeRico passed away in December 2008, 33 years after he made that career change he had been looking for. Rico’s remains Lansing’s oldest pizzeria. “We operate under the concept of family, quality and value. Our cooking method produces our thin, crispy crust. All of our pizzas are finished in the our original slate oven,” said Pluard. While you can get an extra thick crust upon request, their pizzas are made in the standard Chicago-style thin way. You won’t find a deep-dish or stuffed version on their menu — the stuff that is often confused as typical “Chicago-style” by tourists. “The crust should be the vehicle to enjoy the toppings you choose, not a meal in itself,” says Pluard. The menu has expanded far beyond the handful of sandwiches and five toppings originally offered. You can now choose from 20 toppings on top of your pizza, get an order of ravioli or spaghetti, order a turkey on rye or a club sub, enjoy a Rico’s house salad, have a starter of garlic bread or tomato bread or select a number of hot sandwiches — including a Sirloin Supreme (a halfpound sirloin patty on a toasted roll with mushroom); a Triple Cheese grilled cheese sandwich (provolone, Swiss and American on dark rye bread; a meatball sub; a Robust Reuben (a half-pound of Vienna corned beef, piled high on dark rye bread with sauerkraut and Swiss cheese) or a Humungous Hoagie (toasted roll topped with ham, Swiss cheese, corned beef, spicy mustard, onions, salami and provolone cheese, served warm). RC Cola is still the soft drink of choice to accompany their popular pizzas, which customers often order as “well done” for a little extra char and crunch. Look for special discounts and giveaways during the month of December to celebrate their milestone anniversary. Rico’s is open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4 to 11 p.m. The pizzeria is closed on Mondays. They offer carry-out and delivery. For more information and menu, visit originalricoslansing.com.
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