Pizza News: Grimaldi's to the South Bay, More Michael's in Long Beach

Grimaldi's coal-fired pies

By Lesley Balla

Some pizza news in honor of National Pizza Week (yep, that's now), especially for all of you who bemoan that fact that we don't have "real* New York-style pizza around LA: Grimaldi's, the legendary Brooklyn pizza joint known for coal-fired pies and epic lines, is coming to the area this spring. The Daily Breeze reports that the first location will open in El Segundo, the first of six outposts opening in California this year. The pizza joint has dibs on the Daily Grill at 2121 Rosecrans, which has been vacant for two years.

There will be more than 200 seats, a banquet room, patio and bar, but the most important thing will be installing the coal-burning ovens. In 1998, Frank Ciolli bought the naming rights from Patsy Grimaldi, whose father opened the first Grimaldi's in Brooklyn, and expanded the brand (side note: Patsy G. recently opened another pie spot called Juliana's in Brooklyn). You can now find Grimaldi's in Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Florida, South Carolina and New Jersey. [via GS]

And Michael’s Pizzeria, which was named top pie in the 2013 Los Angeles Restaurants guide, will open a third location at The Promenade in downtown Long Beach. The new restaurant has "thousands of square feet," which translates to more room for more pizza. According to a note on the website, the new Michael's will debut in February.