Mason Lesser is only 25, but the former professional surfer has already swapped saltwater for red sauce and quietly dropped anchor on Marina's Pizza in Fishtown. The late-2025 arrival is turning out thin-crusted New York–style pies that have quickly become a steady option for takeout and late-night cravings. In a neighborhood already packed with competitors, Lesser says he is banking on long hours and an obsessive process to keep Marina's from getting washed out.
From Surfboards To The Pizza Line
Lesser runs Marina's with a six-person crew and says he puts in 10 to 14 hours a day, seven days a week. He ferments his dough for about two days, bakes pies at roughly 600 degrees, and figures a new pizza comes out of the oven about every 10 minutes. "People keep telling me that I'm going to burn out," he told Axios.
A Family Starter And Old-School Roots
Lesser learned the trade in his grandfather Angelo Lancellotti’s pizzerias; Lancellotti operated roughly a dozen shops around the tri-state area, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Marina's leans on a 60-year-old starter and a 48-hour fermentation that Lesser credits for both the crust’s flavor and its digestibility, per What Now Philadelphia.
What To Expect On The Menu
Marina's focuses on big slices and whole New York–style pies built on a light sauce, a blend of fresh and low-moisture mozzarella, and finishing touches such as pecorino or a drizzle of hot honey. Local reviewers have been sliding the shop onto short lists of new must-try spots and singling out pies like the Riviera, impressions reflected in coverage by The Infatuation.
Fishtown's Crowded Pizza Turf
Marina's joined the neighborhood late last year, part of a broader surge of new pizzerias that local coverage followed through 2025, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Nearby, Vince's Pizzeria recently announced it was leaving the Frankford stretch after a five-year run, a reminder of how quickly the strip can turn over, per booted from Fishtown hot strip. For Lesser, keeping Marina's in the rotation will depend as much on building regulars as on keeping that oven ripping hot.
