Legendary NYC Pizza Joint Looking for New Owner, On One Condition

New York City is world-renowned for its pizza, and one longtime Coney Island spot is working to keep the legacy of their Italian immigrant grandfather alive. 

Totonno’s Pizzeria Napolitana celebrates its 100^th birthday this year, and the descendants of founder Antonio “Totonno” Pero are looking for an investing partner or buyer to take over the family business to help preserve the iconic institution. Pero’s granddaughter Antoinette Balzano and her sister Louise “Cookie” Ciminieri are open to any kind of partner or owner, but they’d have to abide by one condition: to not serve pineapple on pizza. 

“My grandfather would turn in his grave to hear ‘Pineapples,'” Balzano told The New York Post. The ban also extends to other unconventional toppings like shellfish: “Clams? Oh my God.”

Totonno’s is one of the few pizza restaurants left across the city that uses a coal-fired oven. Pero’s grandchildren are proud owners of the location, but they simply need help keeping the place running, as they’re well past retirement age. 

Like many Italians, Pero emigrated to New York City in the early 20^th century. He opened his Coney Island pizzeria in 1924 after working at the famous Lombardi’s restaurant in Manhattan’s Little Italy. Being able to open his own business, Balzano said, is the realization of a massive dream. 

“To come here with no money, no family, and people are still talking about him 100 years later,” she said. “How many people can say that unless you’re a movie star or Mozart?”