PIZZA RESTAURANTS SCARE UP EXTRA BUSINESS.

Byline: Eugene Tong  Staff Writer

NEWHALL - Pizza restaurant manager Leigh Schroyer boxed pizzas and handled customers with a deft hand Monday as orders streamed in on one of the busiest days of the year for the industry.

``For some people, it's the Super Bowl,'' said Schroyer, who manages a Domino's Pizza store on Lyons Avenue. ``But for us, it's Halloween.''

The holiday of ghouls and candies also is one of the busiest days of the year for take-out pizza restaurants. Schroyer said he had 34 staffers working Monday, with more than 20 drivers on the road in anticipation of the flood orders expected between 4 and 6 p.m.

It's prime time for parents preparing for dinner after a round of trick-or-treating with the children.

``I'm going to have to multitask to succeed at this job - have to make pizzas, take phone calls, dispatch drivers - all at the same time,'' he said.

``I've had to call former colleagues - friends who have worked here - (and ask) if they would come here to help. I've even tried to convince my wife. All in all, it's a pretty fun day.''

The store - the ninth busiest in the nation, Schroyer said - expected to roll out as many as 350 pies, compared to roughly 100 on a typical Monday.

``They don't want to cook when they're handing out candy,'' he said of customers.

Bob Wexler, owner of Vincenzo's Pizza in Newhall, also counts Halloween among the busiest days of the year - adding 10 to 20 more orders to the crew. He also doubled the number of drivers from two to four.

``It's one of our busiest pickup and delivery days,'' he said. ``There's parties - I just did a party for (The Newhall Land and Farming Company) and I have another one going to City Hall.

``People here don't cook. They call for pickup before they go out trick-or-treating, and they come back and have a party.''

Wexler said his staff can come to work in costumes - though it's often too hot in the kitchen for anything too elaborate.

``I go as a pizza man every year,'' he said.

During the lunch hour, Tami Bardin, 43, of Valencia picked up a pepperoni pizza for her daughter and several more for dinner.

``It's for convenience - so I don't have to cook,'' Bardin said. In the spirit of the season, she tossed a couple of candy eyeballs onto the pie, a special treat - or trick - for her Hart High student.

Despite the expected windfall, it's also tough work, especially for drivers, who have to take extra care on neighborhood streets. On Halloween night the speed limit slows to 15 mph, and drivers are reminded to avoid parking anywhere that requires backing up.

``We have to be really careful,'' Schroyer said. ``There are kids darting out in the streets.''

Domino's driver Mecho Albarran took a break from his eight-hour shift, preparing his next delivery. Though he's required to wear the blue-and-red uniform and is working, he also was expecting some fun.

``Sometimes they come up to the door and try to scare me,'' said Albarran, 35. ``I just play their game.''

He recalled one customer's idea of a trick.

``I was at the door making a delivery, and a kid came out of a side door of the house and grabbed me from the side,'' Albarran said. ``That really scared me.''

But it's not all spooks and shivers for the deliveryman.

``We get good tips - like $20 on a small order,'' Albarran said. ``And there's candy.''

Eugene Tong, [phone]

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Leigh Schroyer, manager of Domino's Pizza in Newhall, prepares for a busy Halloween evening. The restaurant even brought in extra staff.

(2) Alex Florido and Degar Infange whip up pizzas at Domino's in Newhall on Monday.

David Crane/Staff Photographer