Ray's Pizza, and its many variations such as "Ray's Original Pizza", "Famous Ray's Pizza" and "World-Famous Original Ray's Pizza", are the names of dozens of pizzerias in the New York City area that are generally completely independent (a few have multiple locations) but may have similar menus, signs, and logos.
Ralph Cuomo opened the first Ray's Pizza, at 27 Prince Street in Little Italy, in 1959, named after his nickname "Raffie". In the 1960s he briefly owned a second Ray's Pizza, [1] [2] but sold it to Rosolino Mangano in 1964. [1] Mangano kept the name and later claimed that his was the first. [1] [2] [3] In 1973, Mario Di Rienzo named his new pizzeria Ray's Pizza (which is now closed) after, he claimed, the nickname for his family in Italy. Also that year, Joseph Bari purchased a pizzeria from Mangano and renamed it, and several others, as Ray Bari Pizza. By 1991, dozens of pizzerias in New York City had "Ray's" in their name, as well as those in other American states. [3] [1]
In 1981, Gary Esposito purchased a pizzeria from Mangano. After opening several more "Original Ray's" restaurants, he partnered with Cuomo and Mangano to combine independent "Ray's" restaurants into an official franchise chain. [3] [1] As of 2011 [update] there were at least 49 restaurants by some variant of that name in the New York City telephone directory, [4] including one named Not Ray's Pizza. [3]
The first Ray's Pizza closed its doors on Sunday, October 30, 2011, following a legal dispute over rent and a lease that followed its owner's death in 2008. [5] [6] Half of the space that once housed Ray's Pizza has been leased to a new company, Prince Street Pizza. [7] Meanwhile, Famous Ray's Pizza on Sixth Avenue and 11th Street, which had served pizza since the 1970s, closed down in 2011, [8] reopened under the name "Famous Roio's Pizza" in 2012, [8] and closed again in 2013. A Chinese restaurant now occupies the space. [9]
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The confusion of various Ray's Pizzas is featured in a gag in the 1997 episode of The Simpsons "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson". While waiting for a traffic officer beside the World Trade Center, Homer spots a pizza parlour named "Original Famous Ray's (Not Affiliated With Famous Original Ray's)." [10]
In the episode “The Maid” in the final season of Seinfeld , Kramer gets lost and calls Jerry for help. He tries to use a Ray's Pizza to describe where he is, but there is confusion over which one he might be seeing.
In the TV show Friends , Rachel can be seen with a pizza box from Ray Bari Pizza. This leads fans to think that the pizza store that the friends frequent is Ray Bari Pizza.
In the episode "The Caste System" in the second season of Sex and the City , Miranda accompanies her boyfriend Steve to Famous Original Ray's Pizza located at 204 West 9th Avenue in Chelsea. [11]
In the 2003 film Elf , Santa Claus erroneously tells Buddy that the Famous Ray's Pizza location in Greenwich Village is the original Ray's Pizza, saying, "…there are, like, 30 [of them]. They all claim to be the original, but the real one's on 11th." [12]
In the 2008 film Iron Man , Obadiah Stane brings Tony Stark Ray's Pizza back from his business trip to New York. [13]
In the episode “Gintars” in the sixth season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Gintars (played by Ike Barinholtz) concocts a story in which he eats pizza at “Famous Ray’s” to make it seem like he is a native of New York.
Grimaldi's Pizzeria is an American pizzeria chain from the New York City area with over 40 restaurants throughout the United States. Its most famous restaurant is under the Brooklyn Bridge in Brooklyn at 1 Front Street, next door to its original location. Zagat Survey rated Grimaldi's the No. 1 Pizzeria in New York in 2007. With a carry-out and delivery service model in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2022 it had 43 restaurants in operation overall. It does not sell slices, only whole pies, which are cooked by coal-fired brick ovens. It also sells wines and appetizers, as well as calzones. Among desserts are cannoli and tiramisu, as well as New York–style cheesecake.
Di Fara Pizza is a pizzeria located at 1424 Avenue J in the Midwood section of Brooklyn, New York City. Situated between East 14th and East 15th Streets, the restaurant was owned and operated by Domenico DeMarco (1936–2022) since 1965.
Giordano's is an American pizzeria chain that specializes in Chicago-style stuffed pizza. Brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio founded Giordano's in 1974 in Chicago, Illinois. The pizzeria has since expanded to over 65 locations in Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Nevada, and Wisconsin. The chain has also expanded to offer catering and ship frozen pizzas in the United States.
Totonno's is a pizzeria located at 1524 Neptune Avenue in Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York. It was established in 1924 by Antonio "Totonno" Pero.
L&B Spumoni Gardens is an Italian-American pizzeria-restaurant in the Gravesend neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City. Originally conceived as an ice and spumoni stand prior to World War II, it grew during the mid-1950s into a full-scale pizzeria that's known today primarily for its Sicilian pizza and ices. The restaurant has been featured on the show Man v. Food. NY Eater critic Robert Sietsema considers L&B Spumoni Gardens a must-try Italian American restaurant in Brooklyn. They were featured on Andrew Zimmern’s show The Zimmern List.
Pizza Land, spelled Pizzaland on its front sign and in press accounts, and as two words on a separate sign, is an American pizzeria at 260 Belleville Turnpike in North Arlington, New Jersey, which features in the opening credits of The Sopranos. In Law & Order episode 10.6, "Marathon" (1999), a pizza box from the restaurant was used by a suspect to transport and conceal firearms.
Sizzle Pie is a pizza restaurant chain based in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Ann Kim is a James Beard Award-winning chef and restaurateur in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Pizza Jerk is a pizzeria with three locations in Portland, Oregon. Tommy Habetz opened the original restaurant in 2015.
Handsome Pizza was a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon. Established in 2012, the business closed in August 2022.
Pizza Thief is a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon. The restaurant has a "sibling" adjacent bar called Bandit Bar.
Lonesome's Pizza was a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon. Co-owners Noah Antieu, Nic Reddy, and Nik Sin started the delivery-only business in 2010. In 2012, Lonesome's began operating from a window at the nightclub and music venue Dante's. Known for its quirky pizza names and for including artwork and music with deliveries, the pizzeria closed in 2017.
Baby Doll Pizza is a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon.
The American city of Portland, Oregon has been recognized for its pizza culture and establishments.
Gracie's Apizza is a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon's St. Johns neighborhood, in the United States.
Scottie's Pizza Parlor is a pizzeria with two locations in Portland, Oregon. Scott Rivera and Amy Coplen opened the original location in southeast Portland's Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood in 2015. The second location opened in northwest Portland's Northwest District in late 2022.
Baby Blue Pizza was a vegan pizzeria in Portland, Oregon. The restaurant operated from July 2019 to January 2022, closing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paul Giannone, known as Paulie Gee, is an American restaurateur who founded the eponymous Paulie Gee's pizzeria in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York.
Via Tribunali is a pizzeria with two locations in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. Currently operating the city's Capitol Hill and Queen Anne neighborhoods, the restaurant previously operated in the Georgetown neighborhood and in New York City and Portland, Oregon. The business was established in 2004.
