Long Awaited Grand Opening for Grimaldi’s Pizzeria in El Segundo

The Daily Grill departed El Segundo’s Restaurant Row on Rosecrans Ave. long ago. After its departure, a sign appeared announcing Grimaldi’s Pizzeria would be opening soon.  Hearing the buzz about Grimalidi’s pizza from my friends, I anxiously waited for the new establishment to open.

That day finally came in January 2014.

Grimaldi’s Pizzeria went all out for their west coast grand opening. It was also an AYSO El Segundo (Region 92) benefit to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of AYSO. A red carpet awaited the attendees with a photo backdrop sponsored by Grimaldi’s Pizzeria and AYSO Soccer. The city of El Segundo arrived in full force with the Mayor, Bill Fisher; the City Manager, Greg Carpenter; and members of the El Segundo city council attending.

The LA Galaxy mascot, Cozmo, and the LA Galaxy support crew were there to support AYSO Region 92. Cozmo displayed boundless energy by demonstrating the proper way to kick a successful shot on goal. The commissioner of Region 92, Eric Stolker, was also in attendance.

Two ribbon cutting ceremonies were conducted. The first was for the grand opening of Grimaldi’s Pizzeria; the second was for the El Segundo chamber of commerce to celebrate Grimaldi’s Pizzeria opening in El Segundo.

With the grand opening formalities aside, it was time to dig in!

I deferred all of my choices to my server, Armando. He recommended the house salad, the pepperoni sausage pizza and cannoli. Despite my desire to pick the wine, I also asked him for a recommendation on the wine. He recommended a glass of the Layer Cake Malbec.

I was quite impressed with the malbec. Maybe I’ve been drinking cheap malbecs, but this one was more full bodied and had a nice finish. I think it pairs well with pizza and pasta sauce.

I typically don’t order house salads because I frequently receive an unmemorable salad consisting of iceberg lettuce and a few other items. Grimaldi’s Pizzeria surprised me by serving an attractive salad consisting of romaine lettuce, sliced red onions, sliced cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, whole green olives and roasted red peppers with a vinaigrette dressing. The romaine lettuce was crisp and the remaining ingredients were flavorful. The serving was large enough to be a nice lunch.

The pepperoni and sauce pizza arrived next. Grimaldi’s Pizzeria provides table stands for the incoming pizza. This is a nice touch because when the pizza is elevated above the table, it doesn’t occupy the entire space. I was impressed that both the sausage and pepperoni were of high quality which didn’t equate to a drippy piece of pizza.

Believe it or not, I usually pass on desserts, but I have a weakness for a good cannoli. I discovered cannoli’s in the Italian sections of Baltimore and Philadelphia and since then I’ve been on the lookout for its appearance on any menu. This was a truly great finish to the evening. I thought that all of the flavors worked well together and the sweet/salty ricotta cheese filling was quite memorable.

Grimaldi’s is open every day of the week from 11 AM until 10 PM; Closing time is 11 PM on Saturdays.  They offer validation for two hours of parking in the deck adjacent to the building.

• Grimaldi’s Pizzeria
  
  • 2121 Rosecrans Ave. Suite 1399 El Segundo, Ca 90245 (310) 648-7503
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrimaldisPizza

* Some items mentioned in this article were provided on a complimentary basis for the purpose of this review. This story was accurate when it was published and reflects the uninfluenced opinions of the reviewers.