Brewster resident Jeff Aquilino said last week Catania’s began selling pizza in 1925 almost by accident. Catania’s, which had its initial home on Arthur Avenue in in the Bronx, was originally a bread store, Aquilino said. One day a customer was served a slice of pizza and through word-of-mouth people lined up in large numbers seeking to purchase their own hot pies.

Aquilino is continuing his family’s tradition by owning and preparing pizza and other Italian favorites out of Catania’s off Route 6 in Mohegan Lake, which he has operated for about a year after moving his restaurant from Yonkers. “I around looked for a long time,” he said. “It just looked like the right fit.” It took nearly a year to convert the former frozen yogurt shop into the restaurant, he noted.