He’s thinking outside of the pizza box.
A New Jersey pizzaiolo went viral for his 3-foot seafood fra diavolo slice that will run you $42.50 — topped with mussels, fried calamari and shrimp, and served on a garlic knot crust.
“I would always see these white clam pies, and I was like, ‘Let’s do it big, let’s do all the seafood on it,’” Joe Brignoni, owner of Joe’s Rotisseria in Roselle Park, told The Post.
“I look at it this way, we’re here to paint a picture, not put sauce and cheese on a piece of dough. We want to tell a story.”
When he introduced the mega slice, it quickly went viral on Instagram, racking up over 10 million views — and comments from people asking what they’re supposed to do with the mussel shells.
“I wanted to comment back like, ‘Hey, if you ordered a bowl of mussels marinara, you’re not eating the shells regardless anyway,’” Brignoni said.
The slice is so large, it’s made on a baking sheet pan, and while its price tag may seem steep, it’s based on the amount of labor that goes into it.
“We start our process of making the sauces, all the fresh seafood, get the vodka sauce in there, all the fresh chilies. And then we par bake the dough and then pour the seafood sauce on halfway so it doesn’t overcook,” Brignoni explained.
“And then we put the cheese onto it and then put it back in the oven. And when it comes out, we put the fresh fried calamari so it’s nice and crunchy.”
A graduate of the Disney Culinary Program, Brignoni was always interested in making elaborate and eccentric pies.
“I would make them at the pizzeria that I was working at and my boss was like, ‘Hey, if you want to do this s–t, open up your own restaurant,’” he recalled.
He took his boss’ advice and bought the pizzeria off of Craigslist in 2015.
The shop is known for its triple threat pie — a calzone, garlic knots and pizza all in one — but also serves other specialty pies like Chicken Fingers and Fries and General Tso with Broccoli.
One bestseller is the Waffle Pizza, which Brignoni created when he competed on Guy Fieri’s Food Network series “Guy’s Grocery Games,” and was tasked with making a pizza without using dough, sauce or cheese.
“We take a cheddar dough waffle and press it into a hot iron. Then when it comes out, we put sauce on it and cheese. So when everything melts, it melts in those little waffle holes,” he explained.
Brignoni, who also operates a pizza truck on the Jersey Shore at the ferry stop in Atlantic Highlands, said customers are surprised when they take a bite of his crazy creations.
“They do look gimmicky, but at the end of the day, they smell and taste like something amazing,” he said. “The flavor is beyond there.”
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