Prince St. Pizza has built a cult following that includes some of Hollywood’s biggest names, but the company says the key to taking its famous New York slices nationwide is staying true to the original.
The New York City-born brand has expanded from its original SoHo shop to roughly 20 locations across the US and Canada, with parent company Best Buddy Hospitality CEO Lawrence Longo pointing to strong demand and a relentless focus on product quality as drivers of that growth.
“I think it’s important to stay close to the principles that made it special in the first place,” Longo told FOX Business. “And that comes down to the quality of the product.”
That commitment extends to the dough.
Longo said Prince St. uses a New York WaterMaker system to replicate the characteristics of New York City water at its locations outside the Big Apple.
“Every time we sign a new lease, we get the water from that city, and we send it to the lab, and they create a filtration system that turns our water into New York City water,” he said.
The goal is to make the pizza feel as close as possible to the original Prince St. shop, according to Longo.
“The idea is that when you walk into a Prince St. Pizza, you should feel like you walked into a pizzeria in New York City,” Longo said.
Known for its Sicilian-style square pies and pepperoni-loaded slices, Prince St. sees room for further expansion.
“Sicilian-style pizza hasn’t been really done right at scale across America,” he said.
The brand has also attracted a long list of celebrity fans, including Adam Sandler, who Longo said has visited locations in New York, Malibu and West Hollywood.
Still, Longo said that famous customers do not receive special treatment.
“Whether you’re a celebrity or just a regular customer, we love everybody,” he said.
Prince St. is now focused on building a larger national footprint. Longo said he is “handpicking some of the best operators around America” with the goal of becoming the country’s leading Sicilian pizza brand.
The company is also expanding beyond restaurants.
Longo created “Delivering Happiness,” a video series starring actor Nick Turturro as a pizza delivery driver visiting guests including Dana White, Alex Rodriguez, Bert Kreischer and Ice-T.
The project has since expanded through TikTok Radio and iHeartMedia, he said.
“We’re becoming a media company in a way,” Longo said.
Prince St. has also leaned into entertainment partnerships, including a Disney collaboration that recreated Little Nero’s Pizza from “Home Alone” at select locations.
The campaign earned a Clio Award.
Despite those new ventures, Longo said the brand’s growth strategy comes back to staying “true” to what made the original SoHo shop successful.
“How do you scale a cult brand?” he said. “You really stay true to what made it successful in the first place.”