The restaurant business is tough. Owners put in long hours and deal with staff that come and go. The ability to have consistent quality and service to keep and attract customers is challenging.

So, it’s particularly noteworthy when an independent restaurant remains open for 20 years.

When Ingleside Village Pizza opened on July 28, 1992, at 2395 Ingleside Ave. in Macon, owner Tina Dickson wasn’t really sure what the future held.

“I was just hoping that we would have a pretty good run of it,” said Dickson, who was 29 at the time. “I didn’t see too far into the future. It was day by day, and I just felt it was something I had to do.”

The restaurant -- often called IVP -- will celebrate its anniversary all week with specials leading up to a grand prize drawing when a lucky pizza lover will win a pizza a month for a year.

Read the full story in Sunday’s Telegraph.