Pizza With Passion: New Owners Putting Heart and Soul into Dominick's Pizza

For most people, working 85 hours a week is labor. For Nich Buytaert and Bob Kadrlik, it's a labor of love.

The two took over Dominick's Pizza in Inver Grove Heights in January  2011 and have been putting their hearts and souls into the restaurant ever since. The co-owners are passionate about not only making great tasting food, but a great food tasting experience.

"We try to do things old school, where customers are actually important," said Buytaert, who learned the restaurant business making pizzas at a small restaurant in Hutchinson. "We try to know them by name. We try to thank them for coming in. We want them to know we appreciate them."

The restaurant is located at 9715 S Robert Trail in the same building as the Trestle Stop Gas Station. Dominick's features a wide variety of pizzas, philly cheese steaks, buffalo chicken sandwiches, gyros, stromboli, wings, burgers, fries and more.

“We make all our food ourselves,” added Buytaert . “The crust is handmade. The sauce is handmade, the marinara is handmade. We come in every morning and cut vegetables. It's fresh and we do everything ourselves.”

That includes delivering the pizzas too. Dominick's delivers to a five mile radius that includes Inver Grove Heights, Eagan and Rosemount. Buytaert and Kadrlik are the only employees, although Buytaert's sister Amanda — also Kadrlik's fiancé — helps out during busy times.

Kadrlik spent a number of years working as a chef for restaurants in the Marriott Hotel chain. What he enjoys most about being a business owner is trying new things and just running with it.

"It's nice to try new things without having to go through any red tape," said Kadrlik. "We were experimenting with a sandwich one day and the next thing you know, it's on the menu (chicken bacon ranch). Now people live by it. We didn't have to go through the corporate chain to get permission. We just got to try it and put it on the menu. That’s what I like.”

The dining area at Dominick's is small, but intimate. It has the feel of a New York Style pizza diner or the atmosphere you would see on a Food Network show - everyone is happy to be their because not only is the food good, but the atmosphere makes people feel welcome and comfortable.

Among the regulars at Dominick's are members of the Eagan High School hockey team that qualified for the 2011 state tournament. The owners made the team a promise: Make it to state and we'll throw you a pizza party. Now, a large group of members of that hockey team - as well as members of the baseball and lacrosse teams, come to the restaurant anywhere between three to five times a week. They come so often Buytaert and Kadrlik know what they want as soon as they walk in the door.

That type of service—along with great food, didn't go unnoticed, said Nick Kuchera, an Eagan hockey player who was there ordering with  friends on a recent Thursday afternoon.

"The guys are friendly," he said. "The service is great, the food is great and it's just a really cool atmosphere. It may be a hidden secret, but we sure know about it."

Editor's Note: Each month, Inver Grove Heights Patch asks the owners of a well-established, local business what makes them successful. We publish their answers in "Secrets to Success."

Correction: The article above has been changed to correct an inaccuracy. Nich Buytaert's first name was spelled incorrectly.