CHAMPAIGN — One gift stood out to Joe DiPietro when he was named president of the University of Tennessee system in 2011 — a pair of frozen pizzas from Papa Del’s, which he and wife Deb tried and failed to find a replacement for after leaving Champaign many years prior.
“When we were in Gainesville (Fla.) for nine years and then Knoxville (Tenn.), all we did was look for pizza that compared to Papa Del’s,” Deb DiPietro said. “Nothing did.”
“The other thing that happened out of those pizzas being delivered was the catering staff at the University of Tennessee decided they were going to see if they could create it,” said Joe DiPietro, now retired and back in Champaign.
“And they never could,” he said. “Didn’t even come close. And they were pretty talented.”
The DiPietros’ love of Papa Del’s pizza isn’t unique. The restaurant founded by Bob Monti in 1970 soon became a frequent stop for University of Illinois students, a pilgrimage for alumni who came back to town and a staple for locals who grew up going to its various locations over the years.
Papa Del’s owner Bob Monti poses with daughters Meredith Monti, left, and Andrea Seten at the restaurant in 2020.
Mr. Monti died June 28 at age 79.
“He was immediately a friend,” architect Keddy Hutson said, noting he and Mr. Monti became close while working together on various iterations of Papa Del’s buildings across Champaign.
“It was just a wonderful experience all the way around,” Hutson added. “He was so loyal and such a good collaborator on that and uncompromising. That showed in a lot of what he did.”
Mr. Monti paid attention to details and kept tradition in mind during 55 years in business in Champaign-Urbana — first on Wright Street before adding additional locations on Green Street and at Village at the Crossing in southwest Champaign.
Papa Del’s eventually settled at a former Coca-Cola bottling plant on Neil Street in 2019, its sole location in operation today.
“He was always so appreciative of my abilities and, I tell you, I’ve never had a client that was that involved or that loyal or that appreciative,” Hutson said. “He sang my praises to whoever … just a great guy and we’ll miss him horribly.”
Papa Del’s Pizza Factory on Neil Street in Champaign on Monday.
Mr. Monti’s family — including daughter Andrea Seten, the current general manager of Papa Del’s — has paid attention to an outpouring of support on social media in the days since his passing.
“Every day I think I’ve got it together, and then I read those,” Seten said. “Someone from a million years ago reaches out and says something and tells a story. … We just didn’t ever realize how many people he had touched or meant something to them.”
Mr. Monti’s death occurred just days before his favorite holiday of the year.
“Obviously, he was a fighter,” Seten said. “He wanted to live. But it’s very Pops to go out with a bang right before Fourth of July so he could watch the fireworks. He was pretty upset that he wouldn’t see the fireworks where he was at. Now I guess he gets to watch the fireworks.”
Papa Del’s founder Bob Monti slices a pizza at the former Green Street location in 2014, shortly after his business received a ‘Delicious Destination’ award from the Illinois Office of Tourism.
Employees, contractors and local officials alike all got to know Mr. Monti well by working alongside him.
Bruce Knight knew him through the Illini Rebounders — Mr. Monti was a big Illini fan — and by helping make Papa Del’s Neil Street location become a local landmark.
“Bob was very passionate about the community, about Illinois sports,” Knight said. “He was always great to talk to when I’d see him around. … He cared a lot about the community and tried to always do his best for them.”
Deb DiPietro was one of Mr. Monti’s first employees, working as a server for a summer shortly after Papa Del’s was founded.
“He was always smiling, always congenial,” Deb DiPietro said. “We just really, really liked him. I liked working for him. … There was no reason not to like him as a boss.”
Mr. Monti’s attention to detail reflects in what customers order from Papa Del’s.
“One of the things we loved about it, especially when we were poor grad students, is you could get a pizza and it was almost as good warmed up because I think the flavor soaked into the deep crust,” Champaign County Judge Jason Bohm said.
Plenty of people kept their days at Papa Del’s in mind after hitting it big.
“When I was a UIUC student getting started in gambling, my friends and I had a standing agreement that when one of us hit a big score, we’d treat the others to a three-course Papa Del’s dinner of cheesy garlic bread, thin-crust pizza and stuffed pizza,” said UI grad James Holzhauer, best known for his 32-game, $2.4 million winning streak on “Jeopardy.” “Papa Del’s was one of the best parts of my college years.”
“A lot of places that have become that popular eventually franchise,” Andrea Seten said. Not Bob Monti. Not Pape Del’s.
Papa Del’s, on the other hand, was never going to become a big player in the pizza game.
“A lot of places that have become that popular eventually franchise,” Seten said. “And he refused to franchise. He wanted to keep it his baby, keep it the way he wanted to do it.
“I think it’s kind of unique that he was able to keep it how it was, but grow it.”
That’s just the way Mr. Monti — and his customers — would have liked it.
“Every college town needs a Bob Monti and his pizza,” Joe DiPietro said.
