For Chase and Kim Hester, owning a restaurant is about much more than serving a good meal. At Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta in Montgomery, this son and mother duo are about creating a place where people feel welcome, employees feel valued and a family works toward something together.
“Our inspiration to open the restaurant together was a genuine love of food and people,” Kim says. “To bring those two things together, in a casual, affordable, family-friendly environment is the best of both worlds.”
That philosophy comes through in a menu built around familiar Italian-American favorites. Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta serves New York-style pizzas made with freshly prepared dough and house-made tomato sauce, along with pasta, hand-rolled meatballs, calzones, stromboli, subs, salads and more. The menu also includes family-style specials and catering options, making it as suited to a quick lunch as it is to a family gathering. But the Hesters’ vision for the restaurant goes beyond what arrives at the table. To them, the heart of the business is closer to home.
“Running a family-owned business is very special to us!” Kim says. “We are a close-knit family, and we’ve always had each other’s backs. It’s a special feeling to look over on a Friday night and see one of us working hard as a team. It’s heartwarming!”
For Chase, the family connection also creates a foundation of trust.
“Family-owned means we can fully trust each other and that we share the same values and goals for the restaurant,” he says.
That shared purpose extends beyond the restaurant’s walls. The Hesters make community involvement part of their business philosophy, partnering with non-profit organizations including Operation Give Back, 1N5, Joshua’s Place, the Varner Foundation, Painting with Purpose, Shoes for the Shoeless and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Their guiding principle is simple: “Always do the right thing.”
Working together has also given Chase and Kim an opportunity to learn from one another.
For Chase, the lesson from his mom is straightforward: “To always be kind and positive.”
Kim sees something equally valuable in her son: perseverance.
“Fryers and refrigerators stop working, employees call in sick,” she explains. “Through the easy and difficult days, Chase plows through, even-keeled and always focused on the big picture. I, on the other hand, am trying very hard to be more like Chase!”
It is that ability to keep moving forward that shapes their vision for what comes next. The Hesters hope to bring Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta to additional locations, expand their charitable giving and continue growing the community of employees and customers around them.
The most telling part of their story is not where they hope to go. It is what they hope people experience along the way.
“We hope that when customers walk in, they feel the genuine care and concern for others that we display each day,” Kim says.
For the Hesters, family extends to the employees who show up on a busy weekend, the customers who return for a favorite pizza and the neighbors who become familiar faces. They share a belief that a restaurant can nourish a community in more ways than one.
At Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta, food brings people together. When a family builds something side by side, the recipe can become something bigger than the meal itself.
Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta
Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta brings New York-style pizza and Italian favorites to Montgomery with house-made dough, sauces, meatballs and pasta. Popular choices include The Brooklyn Pizza, White Dream Pizza, garlic knots, calzones and classic pasta dishes. The family-friendly restaurant also offers lunch specials, pizza by the slice (until 3 p.m.), takeout, delivery and catering.
9797 Montgomery Road, Montgomery | 513.791.0900 |BrooklynPizzaPasta.com