Legendary pizzas are still dished up daily at this touristy pizza mecca, part of a NYC chain spoken of in reverent tones by New Yorkers. Whole, thin-crust pies (no slices) are dabbed with San Marzano tomato sauce and topped with fresh mozzarella, blasted in a coal-fired brick oven then delivered bubbling to your table. Be prepared for long lines. Cash only.
Grimaldi's also makes gooey calzones that could make a pacemaker skip a beat.
The original owner, Patsy Grimaldi, sold the business (and the trademark to his name) in the late 1990s, but years later decided to come out of retirement and open up a new restaurant (called Juliana's, after his mother) right next door – the original Grimaldi's location – as a bit of an 'up yours' to rival owner Frank Ciolli. A pizza war – does it get any more New York than that?
