Papa Yianni was born in a small village in Peloponese, Greece, one of the regions rumored to be the birthplace of pizza. His hard working philosophy and his particular attention to detail was instilled in him from an early age. Papa Yianni would help harvest his families crops, tend to the land, and stock the home with food. Growing up in the village provided him the immeasurable value of family meals. It was not uncommon to invite several families over to indulge in amazing home cooked meals made with all fresh ingredients. This is also where he learned the art of making pizza in the families wood-burning stove. This ability would later pay huge dividends for many years to come. After spending 4 years in the Greek Navy, Papa Yianni would not have expected that at the age of 20, he would travel to New York City where he would begin his incredible career in restaurants.
After working for his uncle for several years in Brooklyn, NY he decided it was time for him to attain the American dream on his own. That is when he made the decision to open up his own restaurant in 1980. Since then he has based all of his establishments on a foundation of maintaining the finest quality in his food, and his unwavering loyalty to his customers. It is that loyalty and his persistence in offering the finest quality that has brought him satisfaction and success. He operates his restaurant with the belief and philosophy of “satisfaction over saving” and “when I feed my customers, I’m feeding my family”. Papa Yianni and the rest of the I LOVE NY PIZZA family get absolute fulfillment when we hear our customers tell us how amazing their experience was and even greater satisfaction when we see them come back again and again. So come in and taste for yourself why people (including native New Yorkers) are praising, and voting our pizza the best around.