Grotto Pizza co-owner dispels un-crust-worthy rumors: NEPA properties not part of sale, despite reports

HARVEYS LAKE — Armand Mascioli, co-owner of Grotto Pizza, said on Saturday that the recent announcement of a change of ownership with the company impacts the ownership structure of the Delaware restaurants only.

“While we are all part of the same tree, the Northeast Pennsylvania restaurants are a separate branch,” Mascioli explained. “The only change in ownership that occurred was for those Delaware restaurants.

“Nothing has changed up here.”

A story in the Delaware newspaper Cape Gazette, states, “Rehoboth Beach-based Grotto Pizza has been sold to four employees who have more than 100 years of experience with the company.”

The story goes on to say that the process started last year, but the contract was signed in early 2025, said Grotto Pizza President Jeff Gosnear, who has been working at Grotto since 2002, was named president in 2023, and is now the majority owner of the company.

The story also states that COO Adam Webster, who began with Grotto Pizza in the late 1980s, is the other large investor, said Gosnear. Also, there are two minority owners who have about five decades of experience, he said.

Dominick Pulieri founded the Delaware Grotto Pizza business in 1960 at the age of 17, with his sister, Mary Jean, and her husband, Joseph Paglianite — who started in business with Joe’s Pizza in Plymouth and later opened the Harveys Lake Grotto and another in Wilkes-Barre outside the Wyoming Valley Mall.

Mascioli and Pulieri are co-owners of Grotto Pizza. Mascioli was clear in stating that the Northeast Pennsylvania restaurants are not part of the Delaware transfer of ownership.

Mascioli said the Delaware operation has many more restaurants there and is looking to expand into south-central Pennsylvania with a restaurant in the Lancaster region, which is expected to open in 2026.

“From our perspective, this is all great news,” Mascioli said. “We’ve always had a close relationship with them and work together in a lot of ways. Like I said, we’re all part of the larger family tree of Grotto Pizza.

“We’re not sure where other [local] media outlets got their information regarding Harveys Lake being a part of the deal — no one contacted us directly for any comment on the story before it ran.”

A Times Leader reporter called Mascioli on Friday, and he referred her to Delaware since the sale did not impact the Northeast Pennsylvania restaurants.

“I’m glad (the Times Leader) reached out,” Mascioli said. “These unsubstantiated rumors have caused all our phones to blow up.”

Mascioli said Pulieri decided it was time for a transition to assure an orderly transfer for Grotto Pizza in Delaware.

“Like I said, the Delaware transition has nothing to do with the three Northeastern Pennsylvania stores,” Mascioli said. “Those will continue to be owned and operated by myself and Dominick [Pulieri] 50-50.”

Mascioli said Pulieri is married to Paglianite’s sister, and he has been involved with Grotto Pizza since 1960.

The Cape Gazette story said Pulieri is now 83, and he always wanted Grotto to be a generational business, but he never married, didn’t have children, or have extended family members interested, said Gosnear. It was time to make the transition, and Pulieri wanted to ensure it stayed in the hands of people with the same ideas, values, and work ethic, he said.

“There wasn’t a big announcement because nothing really changed, said Gosnear in the Cape Gazette story. “The contract was signed in the morning, and then it was back to work in the office that afternoon, he said.”