By Melody Hanatani
Daily Press Staff Writer

DOWNTOWN Hey, a famous New York pizza joint didn’t open up in Santa Monica for nuttin’.

Long a neighborhood fixture in Greenwich Village, Joe’s Pizza opened its first West Coast eatery on Friday at 111 Broadway, just off Ocean Avenue — a far cry from the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple.

Sensing the need for more variety in the Italian pie offerings in the Los Angeles area, owner Joe Vitale decided to open shop in Santa Monica, hoping to give a glimpse of his iteration of New York-style pizza that has been feeding the masses in Manhattan for decades.

After learning of the new pizzeria, Jamaica Weiler brought her office-mates over from West Los Angeles for lunch on Tuesday afternoon. Though Weiler has never experienced Joe’s Pizza in New York City, her boyfriend raves about it.

“California has it’s own style of pizza,” Weiler said. “This is nice to have as well.”

She paused and took a bite of a Joe’s cheese pizza, adding, “It’s good, thin crust, chewy and hot.”

Joe’s Pizza was founded in 1975 by co-owners Vitale and father-in-law Pino Pozzuoli, the duo serving up their famous thin crust pizza off the corner of Bleecker and Carmine streets in the Village. The pizza makers later opened a second shop in Brooklyn.

The pizzas have been called the best pie in Manhattan, traditionally a competitive market for pizza makers who claim the water makes the pizzas better. The consensus among Joe’s loyal followers seems to be that the quality is in the crust.

The philosophy of Joe’s Pizza is to offer a simple slice of pizza with some sauce and cheese with few fancy toppings outside of the traditional pepperoni and mushroom.

Vitale brought this mentality with him to Santa Monica.

“I like to keep it simple,” Vitale said on Tuesday.

The native Sicilian, who plans to split his time between the two coasts, currently runs the Santa Monica location along with a small staff. He’s the man on the other side of the counter, preparing the pizzeria’s famous dough, oftentimes popping his head up to smile at a customer.

Visitors to the downtown Santa Monica spot will be reminded of the pizzeria’s East Coast roots, with a sign affixed to the facade reading, “Joe’s Pizza of Bleecker Street, New York City.”

Slices range from $2.50 to $2.75, a full pie runs around $17.

Business has been booming since the pizzeria opened its doors on Friday, lines oftentimes flowing outside. The same held true Tuesday at lunchtime. The pizzeria was relatively quiet around 11:30 a.m., but once the clock struck 12, the hungry crowds started emerging.

It’s an opening that nearby employees have been anticipating for quite some time.

Karen Minutelli, who calls herself a pizza critic because of her Italian roots, said she prefers New York-style pizza, simply because “it’s better.” She called her first slice of Joe’s “satisfactory.”

She lunched at Joe’s Pizza with her three co-workers on Tuesday, all who work across the street in a law firm and have been waiting for the pizzeria to open for months.

“The crust is similar, really similar (to New York-style pizza),” said co-worker Del Seyedan. “In New York, the cheese is flowing off the pizza.”

melodyh@smdp.com