More pizza pie for Lake Charles

Baton Rouge-based pizza king Louis DeAngelo saw the opening of another franchise this month, this one on South Ryan Street in Lake Charles. The new Louis DeAngelo’s Pizzeria is the second franchise in the Lake Charles market, and is one of nine total DeAngelo’s eateries, six owner-owned and three independent. The newly constructed space in Lake Charles follows DeAngelo’s recently retooled format and expanded menu, in which signature pizza and calzones are joined by casual Italian dishes, burgers with an Italian edge and salads. “Frankly, I’m a little jealous of the new location,” says DeAngelo. “It looks great.” The New Jersey native opened his first restaurant in Baton Rouge in 1991 and built a large following among LSU students with a pizza and calzone-centric menu. Lake Charles franchise owner and former LSU student Ben Herrera was an early fan. While DeAngelo says he’s considering other markets like Lafayette and Houma, his current objective is to perfect his current stores. “Right now, we want to really concentrate on what we’re doing,” he says. — Maggie Heyn Richardson