In 2025, local family-owned restaurant LeeAngelo’s moved its location from 1422 Mogadore Road in Kent to 164 Cherry St., in University Plaza. The pizzeria was initially located in MadCap Brew Co., which also closed as of last year.
“The original owner of the building we were in had sold the building to somebody else, so we were a little bit more forced to move, but stuff happens,” said Rosario Gonzalez, manager of LeeAngelo’s Kent Location. “People move on, so it wasn’t anything they did.”
Gonzalez described LeeAngelo’s as being a place that prioritizes community over competition, explaining that as a brand, the restaurant is dedicated to giving back to its community instead of using the community for profit. Each year, the pizzeria chain donates over $50,000 toward community initiatives, pledging to give back a portion of their profits to help make Kent a better place to live.
“Just last year, we gave about $70,000 worth of food, money donations and anything else like that back to Roosevelt and Kent State,” Gonzalez said. “I would say that is what LeeAngelo’s is mostly about.”
LeeAngelo’s new location in Kent is currently located between the Ace Hardware’s and Kent Plaza Cinema. The new location is also larger than the previous, providing more space to accommodate more seating.
“When we moved, there weren’t too many challenges,” Gonzalez said. “It was more about getting the space to a place that we liken to how we typically operate as a business. It was more so planning than anything else.”
Gonzalez said that though there were certainly cons to moving into a new area, he felt that the pros in this situation overpower any issues they had with the space, especially given the short distance they had to move from.
“We were able to maintain a good amount of our customer base,” Gonzalez said. “We only moved two streets down, so it wasn’t like a huge move for us. It was just more so relocating, but it wasn’t too big of a move for our business.”
LeeAngelo’s is open throughout the week from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and customers can place their orders online, in person or via phone at 330-676-5900.
“We really just do everything in our power to give back and support the customer as much as possible,” Gonzalez said. “We’re not looking to pull anything more than we need to boost the business. It’s more so just taking the money to give back.”
Ava Dunn is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].
