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Grimaldi's Pizzeria shut for hours to settle tax dispute

BY ANTHONY M. DESTEFANO | anthony.destefano@newsday.com

July 24, 2008

Say it ain't dough!

Grimaldi's Pizzeria, the famed eatery under the Brooklyn Bridge, was shut down for several hours yesterday by state officials over a tax dispute, according to a spokesman for the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

Known for its delicious pies and long lines of eager tourists and local patrons, Grimaldi's has for two years been in a dispute with tax officials over unpaid state sales and withholding taxes totaling about $160,000, said agency spokesman Tom Bergin.

"We seized them" said Bergin, referring to the legal process where state officials close the business to get the liens satisfied.

The pizzeria, known for its plain interior and long lines, was shut around noon yesterday. Bergin said that a total of seven outstanding tax warrants had been filed against Patabbe Inc., which was doing business as Grimaldi's, since January 2006. Those warrants total about $84,000 in sales and withholding taxes, he said.

In addition two warrants totaling about $66,000 have been filed against Frank Ciolli, an official with the company, for withholding and sales taxes, said Bergin. State records indicate that Ciolli is the owner of the company.

Bergin said that the pizzeria could reopen if the money owed was paid or a settlement reached. That apparently happened sometime before 5:20 p.m. when the restaurant door's opened to a line of about 30 customers.

The opening signaled that the state reached some kind of settlement with the restaurant, Bergin said late yesterday. A sign on the door earlier said the restaurant had closed due to an electrical problem.

Among those waiting for the reopening was photographer Kimio Takawama, 64, of Williamsburg, who accompanied Japanese high school student Takashi Sudo. After reading about Grimaldi's in a Japanese guidebook, Sudo wanted to try the pizza.

"It's OK," Takawama said about the food.

Grimaldi's is historically linked to business ventures that eventually included Patsy's pizzeria in Syosset, although there is no affiliation between the companies today.

A manager at Grimaldi's wouldn't comment late yesterday and declined to give out a telephone number for Ciolli, who couldn't be reached.