Bama Bino cups!

[Riverview Red]

Does anybody remember the cups that Bama Bino Pizza in T-Town would give out when you ordered a pizza? Does anybody still have any of the cups?

 

[deliveryman35]

No, but I sure remember how good their pizza was.
Wasn't it the Greeks that put them out of business?

 

[Miss A]

not really football related, i know, but still interesting. also answers your question about bama bino.

wikipedia definition of "the machine"

 

[jeffs4bama]

yeah, the best, 4 cups and a large pizza, that use to be our fine dinner glasses.

 

[uaintn]

Yep, still got a serving for 12, circa 1980s.

 

[TiderinVA]

I used to have a gozillion of those things

when I was a student at Alabama. As others had said, it was the "stemware" of our apartment. The pizza was cheap and good. I loved that stuff and hated to hear the guy went belly up.

 

[alatider]

All of mine went out at a yard sale (thanks to the wife and against my better judgement).

 

[tidebanker]

My brother lived behind Bama Bino that I think is a Jack's now on Hackberry. We had a ton of them. That was a long time ago so I may not be remembering correctly.

 

[BhamTide]

No, but I sure remember how good their pizza was.
Wasn't it the Greeks that put them out of business?

I might be able to offer a bit of insight here. I just read Miss A's link and thought it might be time to clear the air a bit.

The greek boycott of Bama Bino's had very little, if anything to do with BamaBino's closing. First of all, the greeks make up less that 10% of the student population. The student population makes up only about 15% of Tuscaloosa Coutny's population. Bama Bino's had several locations in Tuscaloosa, Northport and another city. (Eutaw or Moundville, maybe?) Anyway, while the greek boycott certainly didn't help BamaBino's it didn't cause them to shut down, though the owner, Fran Viselli, allowed everyone to believe that the greeks caused his demise.

BamaBino's was several months behind in rent at some of their locations well before Fran's son Joey even ran for SGA office. Former employees have told me many other stories about the pre-existing financial woes of BamaBino's before the greek incident. Another thing that is misrepresented in the link is the reason for the boycott. AFTER, Joey Viselli lost the SGA election, he filed a lawsuit. The boycott was in response to the lawsuit, not his decision to run. Viselli lost the the court case.

This entire story has been one of the more infamous urban legends on campus for years. I've always thought it was kind of funny the way the story took on a life of it's own and how it has changed over the years.

Oh, one more thing. The boycott itself, wasn't much of a boycott at all. It wasn't organized in any way. Some students just stopped ordering from BamaBino's and others sort of followed suit. I know my fraternity didn't fine anyone for ordering pizza from BamaBino's and never suggested that we boycott. I also know that the girl I was dating at the time was in a sorrority and they weren't doing any kind of boycott, either.

 

[Jon]

I might be able to offer a bit of insight here. I just read Miss A's link and thought it might be time to clear the air a bit.

The greek boycott of Bama Bino's had very little, if anything to do with BamaBino's closing..

Finally the Truth!

I was at Bama at the time. Bama Bino's died because their product was horrible and finally faced real competition. When I started in fall of 88 there was Bino's, Papa's, pizza hut and Domino's in T-Town, that was really it. At the time only Bino's, Papa's and Domino's delivered.

Shortly thereafter Mr Tut opened Tut's place on the strip (the best Sandwiches in Alabama, if you haven't tried one try the Tut's turkey you are missing out) and great Pizza. Used to be the Best in Tuscaloosa before being beat narrowly by DePalma's. Still the best delivered pizza in T-Town though they are very Slow

Pizza Hut got into the Delivery business, bringing big name competition

The Gumby's (scumby's) cheap and awful pizza came along

Then Little Cesears and I am sure others

suddenly Tuscaloosa had options, and finally good Pizza (at Tut's) and Bama Bino was on the down swing. I ate Bama Bino's 2-3 times and it was always awful. Yet for years I have read how great they were and how "the Machine" ran them out of town. When I and all of the GDi's I hung out with never ordered Bino's even before we ever had heard of Joey Viselli. In fact if anything the talk of a "boycot" slightly increased their business as a protest against the Machine

they went out of business because of strong competition and an inferior product, period. Though I am sure it makes Viselli feel better to claim he was "run out of business" by the greeks.


Jon

 

[derek4tide]

OMG! I loved Bino's! Didn't they have a cup that had Big Al driving a red car (1984-1988)??

 

[tidedog67]

Bama-Bino was decent pizza. Another place not mentioned was "Godfather's" and their awful buffet that was just student gut-fill like Wendy's old food-bar.

Joey was my RA at Burke Hall one year.

To say that the "Machine" had nothing to do with the demise of B.B. is a half-truth. B.B.'s financial situation probably was shaky at best--but the abrupt closing were more than coinsidental.
Fraternities are a disgrace to higher learning--but they do help in getting tail.

Bama will win handily.

 

[formersoldier71]

My memory may fail me , but I remember their pizza as being cheap with fair quality. I don't think they were great or terrible. As a GDI during that time frame, I could have cared less what the frats did or didn't do. The Sigma Nu's getting busted for digging up someone's palm tree in Florida was funny though.