Brad and Susan Kemp spent 25 years working for Gino’s Pizza in Akron, Ohio, before purchasing the 63-year-old pizzeria five years ago. They’ve now brought the longstanding Akron staple to Southwest Florida by opening a location at 3108 Santa Barbara Blvd., Suite 109, in Cape Coral. 

“It’s all we do,” Susan Kemp said. “We just make pizza.” 

The pizza dough and sauce at Gino’s are made in-house daily, and fresh ingredients are to be expected, with pizzas coming in 9-inch small, 12-inch medium and 16-inch large sizes. Prices for plain pies range from $6.50 to $18, with toppings and extras adding small additional charges. 

The Kemps recommend trying a medium pizza with pepperoni and sausage. “At home [in Akron], half of the pizzas sold are pepperoni sausage,” Susan Kemp said. “It’s very, very popular.”  

Right now is the perfect time to try it, as Gino’s is having a special of two medium, two-topping pizzas for $28. “We have a special blend in our sausage, and we have the curled-up pepperoni that has all the good grease in it,” Susan Kemp said.  

The pizzas have a bit of a thicker crust and a sweeter sauce compared to other local spots, the Kemps said. 

Specialty pizzas, such as buffalo chicken ranch, meat lovers, deluxe and veggie, also are on the menu. The calzones have been a hit so far, with pasta and sandwiches available as well.  

If guests visit Gino’s and want something other than a pizza, Brad Kemp recommends the meatball sub. All sandwiches at the pizzeria are a foot long and served with chips. 

The chicken at Gino’s was a staple in Ohio, with the Kemps hoping to get some of their Southwest Florida guests to try it out. The wing sauces include hot buffalo, honey barbeque and garlic parmesan.  

“At home, it’s pizza and chicken,” Susan Kemp said. “Every pizza shop has chicken.”  

A goal the Kemps have for the pizzeria is to eventually include fried chicken on the menu. However, most of the changes will come when Susan Kemp moves to Cape Coral, joining her husband as a full-time resident in October.  

“It’s tough being the new guy in a new town but people have responded very well so far,” Brad Kemp said. 

The pizzeria offers delivery, pickup and dine-in, seating a total of 20. Gino’s is open from 3 to 10 p.m. daily, closing at 9 p.m. Sundays. Hours are expected to expand to include lunchtime around October.  

“We just need to dig in,” Susan Kemp said, “and get our own history down here.”