Chef Michael Colletti began his culinary journey at a young age growing up watching his grandparents and father, who migrated from Sicily, preparing the family recipes with home grown ingredients such as figs, cardoons and persimmons. This early influence and curiosity led him into the family business ‘ where it all started with dough ‘ when he studied bagel-making at his father’s side and then learned the ropes at his cousins’ pizzeria, Villa Borghese. The discovery of his natural palate and affinity for cooking led him to attend the Culinary Education Center in Asbury Park, NJ. Degree in hand, he soon worked alongside iconic New York chefs Sirio Maccioni of the world renowned Le Cirque, as well as Drew Nieporent and Michael Bao at Mai House.

During Chef Colletti’s tenure as Chef de Cuisine at Mai House, the restaurant was awarded two stars by Frank Bruni of The New York Times, and named among the Top 10 Best Restaurants in New York City by The New York Times. He spent more than two years at Mai House; during that time Chef Colletti traveled throughout Vietnam for several months to study the local food and culture, and was chosen to guest chef at the 5-Star Renaissance Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

After five years in New York, he decided to join friend and celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn in Washington D.C. at the Sunnyside Group. There he would play a vital role in the conceptualization of Chef Mendelsohn’s restaurant, Good Stuff Eatery, located in Capitol Hill. With the national success of Good Stuff Eatery, Chef Colletti was invited to participate in Food Network’s 2009 Food & Wine Festival ‘Rachel Ray Burger Bash’, in both Miami and New York, where he earned back-to-back victories for his creation of the ‘Colletti Smokehouse Burger’. Food Network then invited Chef Mendelsohn and Chef Colletti to compete in an episode of Iron Chef America, where they would ‘Battle Prosciutto’ versus world famous Chef Michael Symon in an episode that aired in March 2010.

Chef Colletti was then given responsibility for opening and overseeing operations at the second Spike Mendelsohn venture, We, The Pizza, also in Capitol Hill. We, the Pizza became an instant sensation, and within three months of opening was voted one of the ‘Top 50 Best Pizzerias in America’ by USA TODAY.

Giuseppe (Joe) Russo is the General Manager of VB3 Pizzeria. In this role he will be responsible for the day to day management and finances of the VB3 Pizzeria. Joe comes to VB3 as an entrepreneur and restaurant owner beginning his career at the young age of 15 working in the family restaurant/pizzeria business. Upon graduating Rutgers the State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and a brief stint at Merrill Lynch, Joe decided to bring his new financial and management skills back to the family business. For six years he managed Villa Borghese in Fords, New Jersey and then he and his cousin, ‘Big Joe’ Russo, decided to venture out on their own in 2006 and open Villa Borghese II located Helmetta, New Jersey, creating a profitable venture. In 2012 he decided to join his cousins Mike Colletti, Giuseppe ‘Big Joe’ Russo, Gary and Ricky Leff to create VB3. Joe was born and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He currently resides in Millstone, NJ.

Ricky Leff is currently Vice President of G. Leff Security Systems where he is responsible for supervising field staff and overseeing the service department in all aspects. G. Leff Security Systems, founded by his brother Gary, is a full service security company which provides a wide range of alarm systems and fire alarm systems, card access, video surveillance and central monitoring, serving residential and commercial clients from Boston to Virginia for more than 30 years. In addition to G. Leff Security Systems, Ricky is a partner in VB3 Restaurant & Bar and VB3 Pizzeria, a joint venture with his close friends/partners. Ricky began his career at United Parcel Service (UPS) in 1977, and spent 18 years delivering packages to commercial and retail outlets, until he left in 1995, to join G. Leff Security Systems. Ricky resides in Toms River, NJ with his wife and two children.