In-Focus Advertorial | Published March 19, 2026
ST. CLAIR SHORES — In 1988, John and Anthony Marino took over the family business on Harper in St. Clair Shores.
Paisano’s Restaurant, founded by their father and grandfather in 1955, has now been serving pizza, pasta, salad and Italian dinners for more than 70 years, and the quality has never faltered. “We’re not a franchise. We’re independently owned and operated,” John said. “We take pride in everything we do.”
Paisano’s sauces are homemade, using Nonna’s recipes, the way she did. The dough is made fresh daily along with fresh-cut vegetables and meats. Guests can taste the difference in these delicious dishes, using 100% olive oil and low-fat cheeses. Their specialties include the universally-adored Meza Luna — a pizza folded over itself and stuffed with three layers of cheeses and your choice of ingredients — alongside traditional classics like spaghetti with meat sauce, ravioli and grilled chicken fettuccine alfredo, chicken parmesan and lasagna, any of which can be ordered al forno — which means “from the oven,” topped with mouth-watering mozzarella cheese baked and browned over the top.
The Marino family’s story at Paisano’s is a tale of perseverance. It hasn’t always been easy, but the restaurant — and its legacy in the community it calls home — have endured.
Rising costs, changing dining habits, and an increasingly competitive food industry have made it more difficult for neighborhood institutions like Paisano’s to survive on tradition alone. Still, the spirit of the restaurant’s founders remains unchanged. In the kitchen, the ovens are still on, the recipes are still meticulously followed, and the staff still believes that good food made with genuine care has a place in every generation.
What hasn’t changed is the importance of community support. Local businesses like Paisano’s don’t endure by accident; they survive because people choose them.
After the dining room closed for a while during the COVID-19 pandemic, Paisano’s worked its way back and now again welcomes dine-in patrons, along with carryout and delivery customers. “It has been hard recovering through that,” John said, describing a journey that sounds a lot like a pizza. “We’ve been through thick and thin.”
Paisano’s Restaurant is located at 30019 Harper Ave. You’ll find them on the internet at bestpie55.com. To place an order or for more information, call (586) 777-5471.