GoFundMe Started To Help Astoria Pizza Joint Destroyed In Blaze

ASTORIA, QUEENS — A fundraiser was created to help support a family-owned pizza joint that was destroyed in a fire on Monday.

Early in the morning on May 10, the blaze broke out at Retro Pizza at 41-02 Broadway. Dozens of firefighters got the fire under control in less than 30 minutes with only one minor injury to a firefighter, but the damage to the pizzeria was still “extensive,” according to the GoFundMe set up by the shop’s owners.

Daisy Avraamides, who co-owns Retro Pizza with her husband, said on the fundraiser page that her family — including her three sons, who also work at the shop — were uninjured by the blaze, but the store’s damage “may take months to rebuild.”

The pizza joint, which has been in the neighborhood for the past seven years, was a staple among area locals — many of whom have helped chip in towards the fundraiser’s $70,000 goal, which will help cover the cost of new equipment and store repairs.

“Daisy and her family could not have been kinder to us over the last 5 years as customers,” wrote one fundraiser contributor, who described Retro pizza as “the best pizza in Astoria.”

Dozens of others, on the fundraiser page and social media, echoed the same sentiment, noting Daisy and her family’s kindness to customers, and how good their pizza was.

“Anytime I go there Daisy would greet her customers with a smile,” wrote another fundraiser contributor, who no longer lives in the neighborhood but has fond memories of Retro Pizza. “You don't deserve this. Please keep fighting!,” they concluded.

On the GoFundMe page, Avraamides asked that those who cannot donate “please share and keep us in your prayers.”

You can find the Rebuild Retro Pizza GoFundMe here.