Dragon Pizza packed after Dave Portnoy’s fight with the owner

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by Jared Schwartz

September 1, 2023 | 10:14 p.m

It must be an acquired taste.

One day after Barstool Sports CEO Dave Portnoy got into a heated argument with the owner of Dragon Pizza in Somerville, Massachusetts, the pizzeria was packed with seemingly satisfied customers.

Even one customer disagreed with Portnoy’s review, giving his piece—the maple-wood bacon steak—a much higher rating than Portnoy’s.

I’d probably give this around a 9 [out of 10]… But it’s a bit floppy, and I have to approve of it,” the customer told The Post as he chewed. “Yes, I have seen [the altercation]. I thought it was better than it rated, but that’s just my taste. owner, [identified by the Boston Globe as Charlie Redd]He looked a little out of control, maybe he was having a bad day.

“It was caught on camera, I guess that’s what it was.”

The 46-year-old Portnoy, who recently bought Barstool Sports back from Penn Entertainment for $1, visited the pizzeria to get one of his pizza reviews, which have been one of his trademarks since his rise to sports media fame.

In a series now called “One Bite”, Portnoy visits popular pizzerias, grabs one bite and then scores a review of the pizza right outside the restaurant, giving it a rating from 1 to 10.

Portnoy clearly did not enjoy his slice of Dragon Pizza and began criticizing it as “garbage” and a “total mess”, giving it a rating of 6.4.

That’s when Reid came out and confronted Portnoy.

“I enjoy your pizza as much as a customer would, but I don’t appreciate what you do, where you come and rule a business in one bite,” Reed said.

After Portnoy replied that he was helping small businesses, the owner replied, “I don’t see it that way,” before returning to the pizzeria.

After a few moments, Reed appeared again and told Portnoy to stop standing in front of his work.

“Let me be clear, fuck you,” Portnoy replied again and again before calling the owner “mother” and “the hole.”

Reed threatened to call the police, and when Portnoy asked why, he replied, “Being a bitch.”

Although Reed could be seen at the pizzeria on Friday, he seems to have no interest in capitalizing on that attention for his newfound fame.

A piece of paper saying “WE DON’T TALK ABOUT THAT” was taped to the window.

A customer who gave a rating of 9 out of 10 said his decision to visit Dragon Pizza on Friday was due in part to Portnoy’s review.

“It made me think of having a slice of pizza,” he said. “That was it.”