Canal Street Dreams

Episode: The Pizza Man New York City Needs & Deserves
Hosts: Eddie Huang & Natashia Perrotti
Guest: Chris Hansell (Chrissy's Pizza)
Date: February 10, 2026

Episode Overview

A candid, irreverently funny, and deeply insightful conversation with Chris Hansell, the mastermind behind Chrissy’s Pizza—a slice quickly mythologized as New York’s new essential. Eddie and Natashia trace Chrissy’s unlikely journey from the New York punk/hardcore scene to pizza stardom, dig into the subculture roots that fueled his DIY approach, and explore how love, loss, and tireless obsession shaped the pies. Expect unfiltered talk on hustle, legacy, old-school NYC food culture, and what it really means to become “the pizza man” the city needs.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Real Life, Kitchen Stress, and Family Dynamics

00:00–03:45

• The episode opens with hilarious banter about “cranking hog in the morning” (masturbation as a wake-up routine), balancing chef-life hours, and the not-so-glamorous juggling act of parenting.
• Natashia jokingly interrogates gendered routines:

  “Imagine if I was like, ‘babe, sorry, you just have to get up with your kid because I have to masturbate all morning.’” (02:43, Natashia Perrotti)

• Eddie and Natashia admit that being creative parents means they’re never quite “regular people,” poking fun at everyday domestic friction and shared exhaustion.

How Subculture Launched a Pizza Career

03:45–07:38

• Chris’s hardcore/punk background gave him an organic network and ethos—unlike the manufactured “PR push” newer spots rely on.
• Early on, he sold pizzas out of his apartment. Word spread through friends from music, not media.
• Eddie observes:

  “That’s like the old way… the homies tell the homies. And it’s a thing.” (05:00, Eddie Huang)

• Chris notes that coming up in punk/hardcore built broad connections—touring made knowing people everywhere possible, which pays off when starting a business.

  “You start doing something different… you already know so many people… it gives you that extra leg up.” (06:13, Chris Hansell)

The Value System: More Than Cheffery

06:13–07:39

• Ties at New York restaurant Superiority Burger started with subculture, not chef connections:

  “We knew who each other were… we’d nod at each other in rooms.” (06:46, Chris Hansell)

• Behind every kitchen, for these guys, it’s about community, not just cuisine.

The Father Connection & Pursuit of Pizza Perfection

07:39–14:41

• Chris’s deep love of pizza was shaped by his father, whose specific taste and pizza obsession taught him to seek “the right slice” everywhere.

  “[My dad] was obsessed with pizza… but he was so specific… taught me to order well done on Fridays ‘cuz it’s super busy and they’ll undercook it.” (08:08, Chris Hansell)

• After his dad’s death in 2011, pizza exploration became a way to honor, remember, and reconnect—especially during lonely tours.
• Cooking began as a teenage job (Carvel, kosher deli), but the punk/art-moving grind took over until he returned to pizza in 2019, teaching himself from scratch at home.
• Chris recounts the struggle of early dough attempts and the rabbit hole of online forums like pizzamakin.com, where old-school operators shared trade secrets.

  “Shout out pizzamakin.com… there’s all sorts of heads on there…” (13:13, Chris Hansell)

• He highlights influential figures like Andrew Bellucci (Lombardi’s)—whose open, communal approach to recipes and mentorship was formative.

Chefs, Self-Critique, and Obsession

14:41–18:25

• Eddie & Chris agree: you can “steal” recipes, but execution is everything.

  “Like, yo, my brother in Christ, if you can do it, do it right. Cuz this is hard.” (15:05, Eddie Huang)

• The best cooks are insomniac obsessives—reading, experimenting, always chasing the perfect pie.

  “If your brain is making you be like, I can’t sleep, I need to figure this out, that’s a special thing.” (16:03, Chris Hansell)

The Long Road: From Amateur to Pizza Man

18:25–24:41

• After apprenticeships at places like Scarr’s and Bellucci’s Pizzeria and a pivotal stint at L’Industrie, Chris finally started selling out of his Bushwick apartment using nothing but a regular home oven and a steel plate.
• This DIY environment forced technical growth and created genuine scarcity—building the initial hype.
• Eddie compares it to “building a car yourself and then going to race F1.” (24:41)

The Pizza Breakthrough

24:41–26:12

• Chris describes the first time, post-quit, his pizza truly “tasted like it came from a pizzeria”—a crucial leap from hobby to vocation.

  “It sounds cinematic, but I looked at my friend and said, that’s it.” (25:34, Chris Hansell)

Pizza Style, Legacy, and The Batman Analogy

26:12–31:10

• Influenced by 80s/90s Queens and Long Island shops, Chris’s pizza is about recapturing lost care and attention, not flashy innovation.
• Eddie calls the essential NYC pizza man “Batman,” describing the periodic rise of a singular obsessive who “puts the city on his back.”

  “In every generation… one person rises up… [who] puts the city on his back in a way no one else does.” (28:19, Eddie Huang)

• For Chris, pizza is also an ongoing act of grief and remembrance—a mission for his father.

  “It’s for my dad… that’s somehow pushed me while he’s not here to, like, have a career.” (31:10, Chris Hansell)

Why One Shop is Enough

32:00–33:29

• “When are you opening the second one?” is Chris’s most-loathed question. It’s about quality, not expansion.

  “Bro, we… it’s been just… just over a year!” (32:01, Chris Hansell)

• Dream shop: a vibe-heavy, cozy neighborhood space like Arturo’s, not a pizza empire.

Rapid Fire: Old School NYC Pizza Landmark Showdown

38:47–42:11

• Eddie puts Chris through “at-peak” matchups between NYC pizza legends. Highlights:
  • Lombardi’s vs. Grimaldi’s: “Lombardi’s.”
  • Patsy’s vs. Arturo’s: “Arturo’s. I’m loyal.”
  • Arturo’s vs. Di Fara (under Dom DeMarco): “Di Fara is the most insane thing I’ve ever eaten.”

    “Top three bites of food I’ve ever had is… Di Fara’s slice.” (40:07, Eddie Huang)

  • The commitment to “touching every pie” and personal pride are what make the true pizza legends.
• Both reminisce about the lost art and experience of “waiting two hours for a pie, and not caring”—a type of culinary pilgrimage.

Food Scene Now & Other Obsessions

44:47–46:45

• Both agree NYC pizza culture is thriving again, with several new standouts and serious operators “who give a fuck.”
• Chris gives love to Superiority Burger, Bread & Salt in Jersey City, and Eel Bar—“the most underrated restaurant in this city.”
• The subculture solidarity extends beyond pizza—a celebration of mutual respect and shared obsession.

  “His bread is insane. Anything he does with beans is always insane. His sandwiches… I just… I could sit there for hours.” (45:56, Chris Hansell, on Bread & Salt)

Notable Quotes & Moments

On “self-taught” obsession:

“The only way you are going to be good at this… is if you’re waking up in the middle of the night thinking about this dish. It’s going to be good.” – Eddie Huang (15:24)

On loss as fuel:

“The whole thing is just like… it’s for my dad. So it’s like, I’m not gonna stop… the fact that my best bud that’s not around anymore has somehow pushed me… to have a career is pretty fucking crazy.” – Chris Hansell (31:10)

On the city’s pizza succession:

“In every generation… one person rises up and it’s just like, I want to do it… Not a player for the Knicks, not baseball, but like Dom Di Fara… The pizza man to me is Batman in the city.” – Eddie Huang (28:19)

On opening a second location:

“That’s my least favorite question… It’s been just over a year!” – Chris Hansell (32:01)

On pizza fanatics and food beef:

“You know, the pizza fanatics are psycho… constantly comparing… Just enjoy it.” – Chris Hansell (43:00)
“I like food beef. Like, I was at the Bow Wars. The Bow wars were fun, you know? It’s fun, man.” – Eddie Huang (43:26)

Essential Timestamps

• 00:00–03:45: Opening banter, family/cheffing routines
• 03:45–07:38: Punk origin story, word-of-mouth rise
• 07:39–14:41: Pizza as family legacy, trial and error
• 14:41–18:25: Recipe obsession, self-doubt
• 18:25–24:41: Apprenticeships, learning in real kitchens, home oven hustling
• 24:41–26:12: The “breakthrough” pizza moment
• 26:12–31:10: Style talk, “pizza man” as city hero, pizza as mourning
• 32:00–33:29: Shop expansion philosophy, the dream shop
• 38:47–42:11: Rapid fire: legendary pizzerias debate
• 44:47–46:45: Other food obsessions, Bread & Salt, Eel Bar shoutouts

Closing Tone & Takeaway

Raw, hilarious, and intimate, this episode celebrates the highest possibilities of food—and pizza—as art, memory, cultural glue, and catharsis. Chris Hansell rises not through hype or expansion, but through relentless, personal commitment and a deep honor paid to both the city and his late father. This is the story of how the next pizza legend—New York’s new “Batman”—gets made from scratch.