Uncle Joe’s Famous Pizzeria, a dough-slinging institution in The Hamptons in Long Island, New York, has gone on a buying spree since it was acquired by Hamptons Brands less than a year ago. And retiring pizzaioli are reaping the benefits.
Under its new ownership, Uncle Joe’s has acquired three pizzerias this year, all of them located in The Hamptons markets. And there are more acquisitions on the way, the company said.
Uncle Joe’s announced on April 15 that it has purchased Papa Nick’s Pizzeria in Bellport Village, as co-owner Sal Tauriello gets ready to retire. Prior to taking over Papa Nick’s, Uncle Joe’s purchased Fusilli in Miller Place in January and Wading River Pizzeria & Restaurant in Wading River in February. The owners of those pizzerias were also ready to enjoy their golden years.
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Hamptons Brands is an investment group headed up by Tana Gerber, a Hamptons artist and historical curator, and Scott Gerber, CEO of Community.co and BrandNext. The group bought Uncle Joe’s Famous Pizzeria from another retiring pizzaiolo, the Sicily-born Giuseppe “Joe” Sciara, last June. The Sciara family will maintain a minority stake in the brand.
The Gerbers’ strategy appears to be simple but shrewd: spreading the Uncle Joe’s brand across Suffolk County—and perhaps further—without the huge expense of building out new locations. All the while, they’re helping, not hurting, pizzeria owners who have served their communities for decades.
“It’s our distinctive honor to offer beloved pizzaiolos and pizzeria owners respectable retirements befitting their decades of hard work and service to their communities,” Scott Gerber said after the Fusilli purchase in January. “Uncle Joe’s will continue to expand by acquiring and preserving more high-quality pizzerias throughout Long Island in the years ahead.”
Papa Nick’s fits the bill perfectly. Named after family patriarch Nick Tauriello, the pizzeria opened in 1987 in Lake Ronkonkoma. The Tauriellos relocated it to Bellport Village 13 years later. Now they’re ready to spend more time with family and move to Florida.
“As we pass the torch to the team at Uncle Joe’s Famous Pizzeria, we do so with confidence that they will continue to uphold the standards of delicious food and courteous service that you have come to expect,” co-owner Alissa Tauriello said in a statement to Papa Nick’s customers. “We trust that they will treat you all like family, just as we have strived to do.”
Uncle Joe’s Famous Pizzeria is a beloved Hamptons brand that started in 1968. It serves original Long Island Panko pizzas, classic New York-style pies and Italian specialties such as Uncle Joe’s Famous Alla Vodka sauce dishes, Parms, Original Sauce Wings and signature Dolci Doughknots.
When they acquired Uncle Joe’s, the Gerbers offered assurances to Sciara, Scott Gerber told SouthForker. “The first one was, how do we create something that holds and preserves the history and legacy of what Joe has built over 50 years of being of service to the community? Secondarily to that was, if we’re in for one, we’re in for 50, because we want to take this and really expand that legacy across, initially, Long Island, and then we’ll see where it goes.”
