Robin Godwin: Pizza di Joey Named One of the Top 101 Best Pizzas in America

Friday, September 18, 2020

Pizza di Joey Named One of the Top 101 Best Pizzas in America

Last week, The Daily Meal published an article titled “The 101 Best Pizzas in America” and Federal Hill’s Pizza di Joey came in at #80. This is the second honor for the Cross Street Market pizza shop this year as it also won best pizza in The Baltimore Sun’s Readers’ Choice poll.

The new accolade came as a surprise to owner Joey Vanoni who said he found out about it from a direct message. He didn’t know about the list but was excited to be on it.

“It feels amazing,” he said. “We have a great team and a great product and I’m glad others feel that way too.”

The article says:

Pizza di Joey is a Baltimore Sun’s Best 2020 Readers’ Choice winner. The spot serves authentic New York-style pizza to diners in Baltimore using fresh, seasonal ingredients from local farms and markets. This veteran-owned shop is known for its 12-inch “monster” slices, and from what we hear, Buffalo chicken is the move.

He also said winning The Baltimore Sun award earlier this year was “a shocker” and that he was excited to receive the honor going up against some mainstays in Baltimore that have won the award multiple times.

Pizza di Joey, which started out as a food truck in 2014, just celebrated the one-year anniversary of its Cross Street Market location on Wednesday.

Vanoni and his team have kept busy during the COVID-19 pandemic. They launched their own delivery service and created an outdoor seating area called the Pizza Patio. Pizza di Joey rolled out new menu items and specials such as grandma pies, which are a popular thin square pizza from New York; Sicilian pizzas; doughnolis, which are a savory dough cannoli; pizza kits; and pizza dough balls.

Vanoni said Pizza di Joey has been very busy since The Daily Meal article was posted. He said people have been driving in from outside of Baltimore and they are getting calls from outside of Maryland. He’s anticipating a big weekend of business and recommends people order online to secure their order.

Pizza di Joey’s hours varied during the pandemic, but it is returning to full speed next week. It will be open Monday to Thursday from 1130am to 830pm, Friday and Saturday from 1130am to 230am, and Sunday from 12pm to 8pm.

Pizza di Joey currently has a team of eight and has been adding to it.

Vanoni is a veteran of the United States Navy and has used his business to help fellow veterans. He’s a board member of The Baltimore Station, which helps veterans struggling with homelessness and addiction, and has a machine on his counter where patrons can make credit card donations directly to The Baltimore Station.