Did John's Pizzerria used to be a theatre?

[ILoveMyDictionary]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 5:20pm

Or was it just built to look like one?

[etoile]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 5:22pm

It was a church.

[Gingersnap2]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 7:22pm

I remember the first time I went there...after passing it for months. I was so busy gazing lovingly at that glass domed ceiling, I almost forgot my food. I, too, figured it was an old theatre at first.

I once googled for old pictures of it as a church, but didn't come up with any. I might look again.

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 7:37pm

Yes, it was a church. I saw it on some show on the food network and they discussed it's origins. Looks gorgeous.

[WickedGeek28]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 9:34pm

I too always wondered this. This is my favorite theater district restaurant.

[erikaamato]

Posted: 12/28/06 at 9:37pm

John's Pizzeria originally opened its doors in the late Twenties. Since then, it has become world-renowned and a legendary institution in New York City - a place where generations of New Yorkers and tourists alike have come to enjoy the finest pizza the city has to offer. When the search was on to find a location as unique as the pizza itself, the newest John's in Times Square, in which patrons eat their pizza under a five-story stained glass cupola of what was once the Gospel Tabernacle Church, was born. Built in 1888, the site was reconstructed to house the largest pizzeria in the country. With over 400 seats, four pizza ovens, and two kitchens, this outpost can accommodate both small and large parties.