5th Street Pub is more than just another local restaurant

5th Street Pub is more than just another local restaurant

Matthew Rutherford
eSomethin Staff

A Margherita pizza ready to be put in the oven
A Margherita pizza ready to be put in the oven. (Photo credit: Matthew Rutheford)

Perrysburg’s 5th Street Pub is cooking up popularity among Perrysburg residents. 5th Street Pub is a local pizza eatery in downtown Perrysburg that is best known for its Neapolitan pizza, which is made using a traditional Italian method. Beyond the mouth-watering pizza, however, is a deeper story of this local pizza restaurant. 

5th Street Pub owners Geoff Kies and Melissa Burge Kies also own a restaurant called Luckies. They, along with their culinary partner, Bruce Rahe, have been working together for many years. 

5th Street Pub Partners with oven
5th Street Pub owner Geoff Kies and culinary partner Bruce Rahe pose for a photo in front of the restaurant’s signature pizza oven. The oven and the cooks are completely visible to customers through a large window stretching the entire front of the kitchen. “Well, obviously, one of the cool aspects of doing Neapolitan pizza is that wood-fired oven. So we just knew we had to have an open kitchen built around just the beauty of the oven alone. And you know, the guys working with the dough and working with the oven, it’s almost entertainment and art in and of itself,” Rahe said. (Photo credit: Matthew Rutherford)

“…after working [at Luckies] for a couple of years, Geoff had started talking about this little place in Columbus that did Neapolitan pizza, but they only sat like four people.  …it’s just this little Neapolitan oven in this little deli area. So the more we started talking about that and researching it, we decided we needed to learn how to do that,” Rahe said. 

Kies and Rahe traveled to New York to study how to make authentic Neapolitan pizza. While they were there, they had the opportunity to learn from Roberto Caporuscio, a renowned chef who specializes in Neapolitan pizza.

Cooked margherita pizza from 5th Street Pub
A cooked Margherita pizza from 5th Street Pub. (Photo credit: Matthew Rutherford)

Pizza is not the only item inspired by their traveling experience; other items are, too.  Their meatballs were inspired by a restaurant in New York called The Meatball Shop. Rahe created their chicken parmesan dish based on a meal on a Disney Cruise Line with his family.

So why should Perryburg residents go to 5th Street Pub rather than ordering a pizza from any of the other restaurants in Perrysburg? 

Rahe believes that 5th Street Pub’s way of making Neapolitan pizza is “historically accurate pizza,” using only fresh and imported ingredients from Italy, including flour, tomatoes and traditional Neapolitan pizza cheeses like buffalo mozzarella.

5th Street offers a wide variety of menu options, not just pizza. Other popular menu items include meatballs and pork chops, along with many other traditional American dishes. 

5th Street Pub is a great place for PHS students to dine with friends or family. 

“It’s kind of a louder place, you know, a more laid-back environment. So it’s just a nice place to kick back with your friends and enjoy good food and a nice place to hang out,” Rahe said.

5th Street Pub is located at 105 W. Fifth St., Perrysburg, OH 43551.

Other stories on eSomethin:

Share

Written by:

View All Posts
Follow Me :