Tony Lombardi, aged 51, opened 'Tony Soprano's pizza delivery' in St Leonard's Road and filled it with references to his fictional hero, who plays a mafia boss in the American TV show.

Mr Lombardi said: "The place is a shrine to The Sopranos. I am a great fan of the series which has been voted one of the best drama series of all time.

"The name has created a stir and puts a smile on people's faces when they see it, especially if they are fans of The Sopranos.

Customers to Mr Lombardi's restaurant can enjoy a range of pizzas named after characters from the show including a Tony Soprano, a Carmela Soprano and a Bob 'Bacala'.

The pizza delivery shop, which doubles as a panini and coffee bar during the day, is also decorated with Sopranos pictures and Mr Lombardi is hoping to remove the front wall to give the place a traditional American-Italian 'al fresco' feel.

The 51-year-old said: "In New Jersey there are many small places like this that have a big connection with the local community where people can walk past and have a close-knit relationship with local traders."

However, Mr Lombardi's attempt to import The Sopranos culture to Far Cotton has not been entirely accepted by the local community as he has already had a complaint about the name of one of the pizzas named after a character in the show.

Mr Lombardi said: "Someone complained because they found the name 'Big Pussy' (the nickname of one of the gangsters in The Sopranos) offensive. I had printed 20,000 leaflets and now I have had to take the name off."

But the Italian owner is optimistic that local residents will soon learn to love his Sopranos-themed food.

In the words of his favourite character, Tony: "Visit us before we visit you."