Dave Portnoy, the founder of sports and pop culture blog Barstool Sports, was spotted outside Smokey Joe's and Allegro Pizza and Grill on Wednesday evening.
Portnoy, who reviews pizza as part of a popular segment for Barstool's One Bite app, was seen holding multiple pizzas when exiting Smokey Joe's at approximately 6 p.m. He then filmed a video reviewing Enjay's Pizza, served at Smokey Joe's, in front of the restaurant and rated it a 6.8 out of 10.
Over the past two weeks, Portnoy has reviewed pizza from various Philadelphia restaurants, including Axis Pizza, located on 36th and Chestnut streets, and Giovani's Bar & Grill, located on 16th and Chestnut streets.
Founded in 2003, Barstool Sports features podcasts, blogs, and videos on the latest sports and entertainment news. The site, which is extremely popular among young men, has courted controversy for its misogyny and racism.
College junior Eli Moraru, who works at Smokey Joe's, said while he was not on shift, fellow employees texted in their employee group chat that Portnoy was at Smokey Joe's. When he arrived at the restaurant, Moraru said he saw Portnoy filming a pizza review outside Smokey Joe's.
Moraru yelled, "It's good pizza," to which Portnoy responded, "That kid says it's good pizza."
Following a $450 million partnership with casino company Penn National Gaming based in Pennsylvania, Portnoy moved to Philadelphia in August to launch the Barstool Betting App.
Portnoy faced backlash in June when videos resurfaced of him using racial slurs, including the N-word. In response to the controversy, Portnoy did not apologize. Instead he tweeted, "You don't cancel me. I cancel you."
In July, Portnoy interviewed 1968 Wharton graduate and President Donald Trump at the White House where he told Trump that Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is on his "'X' list, because every time he talks and says the country should stay inside, my stocks tank.”
"Portnoy is a divisive character whose opinions do not reflect my own and I would not associate his political beliefs with Penn at all," Moraru said. "However, from a business perspective, I know he's in Philadelphia right now for the time, so he'll probably be around Penn's campus a lot more."
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