David Portnoy visits to Bucks County sets off pizza craze in Doylestown and Chalfont

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Barstool Sports and One Bite Pizza founder David Portnoy may have inadvertently kicked off the Bucks County pizza craze with his visits to two local pizza joints.

On the heels of visiting Lucatelli's Pizzeria in Doylestown, Portnoy took his "One Bite" critique to Peppino's Tomato Pies and South Philly-style Sandwiches in Chalfont.

Here's what Portnoy thought of Peppino's tomato pie, and how his visits have impacted the local shops.

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El Presidente grades Peppino's tomato pie

Portnoy, who has branded himself "El Presidente," grabbed a tomato pie from Peppino's, at 449 West Butler Avenue, for his "One Bite" review.

"Super nice guys in there; lots of people getting the cheesesteaks and grinders and things like that, but we're here for the pizza," Portnoy said in the opener. "We got a tomato-style with the tomato on top, and it's nice and thin. I generally love the tomato style because it's so crunchy, usually.

"This one doesn't look like it's going be wildly crunchy to me," Portnoy continued in his review. "It has good undercarriage with a little bit of flop."

After taking several minutes to let the pizza cool and filing the time by comparing himself to Brad Pitt, Portnoy continued with the review of Peppino's tomato pie.

"I really like it. It's a little messy; 7.8," Portnoy said of his final ranking of Peppino's tomato pie. "I think it's really good, and I'd come back. It's a little sloppy, but I really do like it, and I like tomato pies."

For reference, Portnoy, said and his camera crew mentioned that Peppino's received a score of 8.3 on the One Bite website and app.

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Dave Portnoy's visits to Bucks County pizzerias sets off frenzy, creates long lines

Portnoy's visit to Peppino's comes just a few days after stopping by Lucatelli's Pizzeria.

'El Presidente' rates Lucatelli's pies: Barstool Sports' David Portnoy visits Doylestown, rates Lucatelli's Pizzeria for 'One Bite'

And Portnoy's visits have been a boom for business at the two pizzerias, although some customers have grumbled online about the long lines created by Portnoy's reviews. Lucatelli's thanked all who stopped in, apologized for delays and said they put in some new processes to help everyone get their pizzas.

They sold out again Sunday, but said they would be ready to open Monday.

In the Chalfont, PA Community Group on Facebook, one poster summed up the situation.

"Same thing happened to the pizzeria he reviewed in Doylestown. And it made people, who didn't know why the service was so slow, so mad that they were posted awful reviews online," the post's author noted. "Blessing and a curse that Dave made the rounds around here."

Still, the owners of Peppino's were thrilled with the extra foot traffic.

"We opened yesterday to a line out the door!" read one post from Peppino's on Facebook, while another post apologized for running out of stock.

Bartstool Sports and One Bite founder David "El Presidente" Portnoy visits Peppino's in Chalfont to rate its Pizza. It is the second shop Portnoy has visited in Bucks County in recent days, setting off a pizza frenzy in the county.
Bartstool Sports and One Bite founder David "El Presidente" Portnoy visits Peppino's in Chalfont to rate its Pizza. It is the second shop Portnoy has visited in Bucks County in recent days, setting off a pizza frenzy in the county.

"Sorry guys! We ran out of dough for pizza," read a portion of Peppino's post. "Closing an hour early…we are restocking and will be open tomorrow! Thank you for your patience with us as we navigate this new volume."

'El Presidente' turns Barstool Sports, One Bite Pizza into viral trends

Portnoy founded Barstool Sports in 2004, after a stint at an IT firm. Portnoy originally intended for Barstool Sports to be a newspaper and cultivated the brash "El Presidente" character, who would write most of Barstool Sports' content at the time.

In its current iteration, Barstool Sports is a launching site for sports, trending culture and commentary.

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Portnoy is also a die-hard pizza fan who has reviewed dozens of pizza spots nationwide as part of his "One Bite Reviews," which can be viewed on his website or YouTube.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Dave Portnoy takes bite out of Bucks County pies, sets off pizza craze