Pizza Champion Hakki Akdeniz Opens Another Slice Joint on Hester Street
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Famous dough-stretcher Hakki Akdeniz is expanding his Lower East Side pizza empire. The one-time World Pizza Champion just opened another parlor at 84 Hester Street, beside the corner Chinese bodega. Newspaper clippings boasting his prowess hang in the windows, as do bilingual printouts.
The pizza joint is seemingly without proper title, identified solely by its simple white-on-red store signage. They’re currently running a grand opening sale – $2 for any pizza slice, including toppings.
Hester Street is the fifth neighborhood slice outpost for Akdeniz, behind the La Margarita (Ludlow, Cleveland Place) and Famous Hakki brands (123 Essex, 170 Rivington).
Hakki Akdeniz was crowned World Pizza Champion in 2010; his accolades apparently included fastest pizza making and best in “freestyle acrobatics.”
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