The first-ever official Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Pizzeria opened on Wednesday at 1444 Third Street Promenade, bringing the beloved franchise's sewer-dwelling heroes into the world of brick-and-mortar dining for the first time in the brand's history.
The restaurant, located in the former home of Johnnie's New York Pizzeria, will operate in soft-opening mode for roughly 10 days before a formal ribbon cutting June 20.
The concept is the work of Andy Nguyen, a serial entrepreneur with a track record in fan-focused, IP-licensed themed dining. Nguyen, who developed the One Piece Cafe in Little Tokyo in collaboration with Toei Animation as well as the Sonic the Hedgehog Speed Cafe in Atlanta, has also brought concepts tied to Hello Kitty, Rick and Morty, Naruto, and other pop culture properties to life. He began publicly teasing the Santa Monica pizzeria in mid-2025, describing plans for a "classic New York-style cheesy slice straight to the West Coast — with a TMNT twist" that had been "years in the making."
The restaurant promised a casual, family-friendly environment with themed decor and exclusive on-site merchandise which it has delivered to the struggling Promenade. The menu features classic pizzas and an assortment of keychains, t-shirts, pins and other items. Staff are wearing TMNT themed clothing with pizza chefs donning turtle themed aprons and floor staff dressed as foot clan ninjas.
The interior features wall to wall TMNT decor including the classic ooze and a variety of neon lights. A bar in the back will serve alcohol on weekends.
The Santa Monica location is one of three TMNT pizzerias announced globally by Paramount, with the others slated for Monterrey, Mexico, and São Paulo, Brazil. Paramount unveiled the pizzerias in February as part of a sweeping franchise expansion led by Josh Silverman, who was brought aboard last fall as president of global products and experiences after stints at Disney, Marvel, and Mattel. Silverman described the restaurants as part of a broader push to extend the Turtles brand across consumer products and location-based entertainment.
The restaurant expansion is part of a larger franchise push that also includes a 30-episode preschool-targeted YouTube animated series, a global master toy license awarded to Mattel beginning in 2027 — ending Playmates Toys' nearly four-decade hold on the brand — and an accelerated theatrical slate that includes "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem 2," now scheduled for Aug. 13, 2027, and a live-action/CG hybrid film planned for 2028.
The Third Street Promenade opening marks something of a homecoming for the franchise in Santa Monica. Ahead of the release of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" in August 2023, Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies staged a 10-day immersive pop-up experience on both coasts, with the Los Angeles installation drawing more than 16,900 visitors.
That experience, produced by NVE, invited guests to explore themed environments modeled on the fictional underground world of the four turtle brothers — including training zones, a recreation of the Turtles' sewer lair, and an exclusive on-site merchandise shop. Across both the Los Angeles and New York installations, the pop-up drew more than 35,000 guests total.
The TMNT Pizzeria is in soft opening mode.