Cannabis-infused pizzeria reopens in Philadelphia, with less buzz, but then shuts down again

A pizzeria in Queen Village specializing in cannabis-infused food, which had been shut down by authorities shortly after its opening in May over licensing issues, reopened Thursday.

But Pizza Pusha, at Fifth and Bainbridge Streets, closed the next day when it was determined that while the restaurant had passed a health inspection in early August, violations issued by the city’s Department of Licenses & Inspections had not been cleared up.

Pizza Pusha owner Chris Barrett, a cult figure in the cannabis world who runs THC-friendly restaurants in New York called Stoned Pizzeria, said he wants to serve the same menu as before, but with no THC infusions. “Just like a regular pizzeria,” he said, “except you’re able to bring weed and smoke at the table.”

Such a bring-your-own-buzz arrangement, however, would not square with Philadelphia’s Clean Indoor Air Act, which prohibits indoor smoking at public establishments unless the business has a tobacco license, said a spokesperson for the Health Department.

During Thursday’s opening, Barrett’s Instagram showed video of two uniformed Philadelphia police officers at the counter, ostensibly to sniff out any smoking. No citations were issued.

Barrett argues that the act specifies tobacco, not cannabis. He also contends that Pizza Pusha will require reservations for indoor seating; in his view, this would make it a nonpublic venue, exempt from the law. “I don’t want someone walking in off the street and the place is smelling like weed and they didn’t want that,” he said. “If everybody makes a reservation and we’re not open to the public, I think it could work.”

Recreational marijuana is not legal in Philadelphia, but small amounts have been decriminalized, meaning that police will not arrest for minor offenses. The city has, however, shuttered establishments that allow indoor cannabis smoking, including the Lair in West Philadelphia.

In New York, where recreational cannabis is legal, Barrett’s Stoned Pizzeria locations have been allowed to operate, he said.

Barrett said he was prepared to take his chances in Philadelphia. Should Pizza Pusha be shut down, the Health Department spokesperson said, the business could ask for a reinspection, which costs $315.

The Queen Village pizzeria was shut down in May, following a joint investigation by the city’s Departments of Health and Licenses & Inspections, not because of cannabis smoking but because the business lacked a business license and a health certificate. The Health Department cleared Pizza Pusha’s reopening Aug. 2.

Barrett said he chose to open in Philadelphia after running the data from his New York locations. “The most customers we have that are not from New York are from Philadelphia,” he said. “When you come to the restaurant, you have to check in, you have to give us your credit card and your driver’s license. We were seeing half of the licenses were from Pennsylvania, and from Philly more specifically.”

“I think it’s close enough that Philly people don’t mind coming all the way to New York for something that wasn’t available there,” he said.

In a phone call from Ibiza, where he was vacationing to celebrate his 50th birthday, Barrett said he was turned on to the idea of infused cannabis cuisine about eight years ago while living in California. He attended a party where the sauces used in the food contained cannabis oil. Upon returning to New York, he began throwing private parties with pizza on the menu.

“I’m a big weed head,” he said. “I’m an Italian kid from Brooklyn that loves pizza and weed. It was really a no-brainer.”

Barrett also had a business called SendAPackage.com that allowed relatives and friends of New York State inmates to ship preapproved items — cigarettes, sneakers, clothes, food, music, electronics, watches, books, magazines — to them in prison. Through this business, he said, he met celebrities and took the nickname Pizza Pusha.

Barrett said he started the pizza business out of a studio apartment. The square pizza, baked in a pan, could be cooked in a home oven. He added other foods, such as lollipop chicken, garlic knots, and salad, infusing the olive oil with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). None of his restaurants have liquor licenses, but the soft drinks are also infused with THC.

“For the first two years we were working from homes and then maybe another year after that, we were working in a ghost kitchen,” he said. “It was really successful, and a lot of the celebrities that I’ve met through SendAPackage are the same ones that helped me in Pizza Pusha.”

Meanwhile, cannabis shops and dispensaries — legal and otherwise — have popped up all over, and Barrett said competition is everywhere. The restaurant idea gives him an edge, he said. “I think the days of just selling weed in a bag and making a lot of money at it are over,” he said. “I think you need to be creative with the weed. What keeps me attracted to [the business] is the fact that I’m the only one in the space and I’ve been the only one in the space for so long that I think that’s cool.”

Barrett said he recently reconfigured his business. At Stoned Pizzeria, with two locations in Manhattan, customers pay $130 a person for an unlimited five-course meal of cannabis-infused food and soft drinks. (This is the concept that was shut down in Philadelphia in May.)

Barrett has another brand, with locations in the Bronx and Brooklyn, called Eighths, which sells $10 slices of infused pizza. And now there also is Pizza Pusha, with locations in North Jersey, the Catskills, and Philadelphia, whose food (including pizzas at $4.50 and $5 a slice) is not infused.

Barrett said he knew that opening wouldn’t be easy. “We’re learning and we hope to achieve our goal one day, and if it takes a couple of years we’re OK,” he said. “We’re here for it.”