Amy Bartner

amy.bartner@indystar.com

Lexington, Ky.-based Goodfellas Pizzeria will open on Mass Ave. before the end of year.

The New York-style "hole-in-the-wall" restaurant will sell pizza by the slice from 11 a.m. until 3 a.m. when it opens in the Millikan on Mass development, 545 Massachusetts Ave.

"It's very, very typical to see a line of people 20-30 people deep waiting on a slice of pizza after they've had a couple of drinks," said Alex Coats, one of Goodfellas' founding partners. "We believe in filling people up at a reasonable price."

Peek inside Salt, Mass Ave's new seafood spot

The 3,750-square-foot restaurant also will have a "hidden" pre-prohibition-cocktail bar that customers can get to only after "a walk past a long bookcase of old, smelly books."

Montage on Mass to bring much more retail to Mass Ave

"We've got some really gangster-themed type stuff and the speakeasy is the Roaring '20s," Coats said.

The bar will have as many as 300 types of bourbon and 16 taps that will be on rotation. Half of them will be local beers.

Opening pizzerias in neighborhoods with a bustling nightlife scene is a calculated business move, Coats said.

"We focus on entertainment areas," he said. "Mass Ave. is just blowing up and we love it."

Goodfellas has a variety of specialty pies, including "The Vinny:" a white pie with olive oil, roasted garlic, ricotta and mozzarella, and the "Fuhgetaboutit," which is described as "every available topping." Beyond pizza, there will be a number of New York-style sandwiches, salads and desserts, including cheesecake from Carnegie Deli. Toppings for by-the-slice pizzas vary from day to day, Coats said. Customers will be able to pick the slice from the counter, just like they can in New York.

"It’s just whatever our pizza guys are tossing out at the moment," he said.

Coats was born and raised in Lexington but has family from Long Island and knows thin, flat, foldable pizza pies well.

"I grew up knowing what true New York pizza is," he said. "We've got it pretty nailed down."

Goodfellas Pizzeria opened its first location in Lexington in 2006. Two other Kentucky locations and one in Cincinnati followed. Coats said an additional restaurant was in the works, but wouldn't say where. He bristles at the term "chain."

"We have started this ourselves; this is not a franchise," he said. "We really like the local feel, and even though we're expanding we really hold that close to our heart and we want to remain as local as we can."

Call IndyStar Amy Bartner at (317) 444-6752. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.