“It gets a little crazy in here late night,” Dave Harvey tells me about his Market Street pizzeria, which serves slices and sandwiches to the bar crowd and college students until 3 a.m. “We have seventy-five people in here at midnight. I’d like to contact MTV and have them come do a reality show.”
Harvey, known around West Chester as “Big Harv,” took over the pizzeria in November. “I was in corporate America for years and was never able to work for myself, then this opportunity came about.” He’s now slinging pies and managing the late night madness at the shop, which has six stools and does mostly takeout business. Harv and his business partner, Sollatzo, have repainted the inside of the shop purple and yellow to reflect West Chester University’s colors.
Harv asks, “do you like lettuce, do you like ranch?” He slides me a plate with a pizza slice topped with chicken, bacon and ranch dressing (pictured, to left). It’s surprisingly tasty. “This is the CBR. It’s probably our number one seller,” he explains. “There’s no red sauce, it’s more of a white pizza underneath.”
“We sometimes do sixty pizzas an hour at midnight,” he tells me as he shows me the giant mixer used to make the dough. “Our secret? We put garlic butter around the crust – 9.5 out of 10 people love it!”
One of the most popular late night pizza options at Saucey is named the “420,” referring to a popular slang term stoners use. The pizza (seen below, to right) is topped with diced up chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks and french fries. If Harold and Kumar can’t make their way to White Castle, stopping at Saucey for a “420” would satisfy their munchies.
Harv is still working on new menu items. “We came up with the name the Ram Slam but we don’t know what it is yet. It might be a pizza or a sandwich. We’re not sure – we want to come up with two pizzas and two sandwiches and then people can vote.” He’s urging customers to make suggestions.
In addition to pizzas, Saucey also offers hoagies, cheesesteaks, chicken cheesesteaks, pork sandwiches and strombolis. One of their strombolis is called the Italian “Two Prison Term” Stromboli and features mozzarella, prosciutto and sauce. Two Prison Term is nicknamed for a friend who likes telling people that he has served two prison terms in Italy.
Harv says the transition from corporate life to pizza has been fun though he admits at times it’s tiring. “That’s been a big adjustment for me – getting used to those hours. Winding down at 3 a.m.” Still, it’s obvious he enjoys serving his customers and making sure they leave with a smile on their faces. In addition to running Saucey, Harv has been a volunteer in the community. He is the current President of West Side Little League and also helps coach his daughter’s softball team.
For those who enjoy eating their pizza at dinner time instead of late night, Saucey offers a stellar deal. Half-price pizza can be ordered for pickup every day from 4 – 6 p.m. “For the college kids and the working family you can get two large pizzas for $12,” Harv tells me. “It’s an eighteen inch pie also so it’s the largest in the borough.”
Harv is thrilled that the late night crowd in West Chester has made a connection with his pizzeria. “I can stand on the corner at midnight and people walk by. They won’t say lets get a slice, they say let’s get Saucey.”
Saucey is located at 12 East Market Street, West Chester, PA. They are open Monday – Tuesday, from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Saturday, from 11a.m. – 3am. You can follow them on Facebook or Twitter. They are reachable by phone at 610-696-9770.
2 Comments