As we celebrate our flagship’s one-year anniversary this spring, we thought it best to make some formal introductions to a few of Greenpoint’s long-standing legends — starting with the founders of Paulie Gee’s Pizza: Paulie Gee and Mary Ann Giannone.
From Greenpoint, With Love (And Pizza)
A slice of local history with the founders of Paulie Gee's.
We recently caught up with Paulie and Mary Ann at their Franklin St Slice Shop — seated in one of their orange booths with Garfield re-runs playing on the TV and, of course, some fresh pizza. Paulie Gee’s has been a favorite with the QMS team, being less than a 5 minute walk from the flagship store. We love it for a late night slice and even included it in our Greenpoint lunch spot roundup a few years ago.
Paulie told us about his humble origins, feeling stuck in a career he did not love, and being called by coal fire pizza. As Williamsburg started to really boom in the early 2010s, he and Mary Ann saw an opportunity in nearby Greenpoint, where his doors have been open ever since. The Slice Shop, around the corner from the original sit-down restaurant, opened in 2019. While Paulie said the COVID-19 pandemic hit them hard, like it did so many restaurateurs in Brooklyn, he said the community really showed up for them. There were socially-distanced lines down the block waiting to get a slice of pizza and show their appreciation for the neighborhood institution.
The next chapter for Paulie and Mary Ann? A highly anticipated cookbook, released in March, titled Pizza From The Heart. Equal parts memoir, manual, and love letter, the book captures the spirit of the slice shop with recipes, stories, and a healthy dose of Paulie’s signature humor. It’s available now—and yes, we have copies at the shop (though we can’t promise they’ll last long).
