Grimaldi’s Coal Brick-Oven Pizza

You know, it’s difficult to write a poor review but people pay a lot of money at restaurants and life is too short to eat so so food. This gets a C at best — the pie was ok, but it lacked flavor. We had two varieties. I liked how it was cooked with the slightly burned edges and thin crust but the appearance was better than the taste. It’s also expensive. Add some appetizers and a couple of pies, you’ll be north of $ 60 — $ 70 pretty quick.

Ordered take out pizza. Was stone cold and soggy. Won’t be back

Crust is excellent, pepperoni seemed to be pretty high quality. Correct amount of char. This is my go to place in the area.

Cozy setting, good service, no issue finding a parking spot. I was very excited to see they offered vegan cheese! I ordered a large pizza with vegan cheese, hot peppers and onion and was far from disappointed! The crust was cooked perfectly with a nice crisp around the edges but not so much where it was burnt. I was excited to have left overs the next day! I will be back again!

Stopped for lunch. Pizza crust very thin and delicious.
House salad had wonderful garlicky roasted red pepper.

Just left with my sister, we’ve been here several times and the food is decent (not out of this world or anything) the waiter we had today was so rude and just put me off to coming back. When we asked for napkins– after we had used 2 of the 3 on an appetizer, he came back and gave us one single napkin. My sister asked if we could please have some more and he went over to the register with a girl he was training and spent a few minutes just with her before he returned with 2 more napkins. He returned with our check when we had only eaten 2 slices of pizza (we had 6 left!) didn’t say anything and just dropped the check on the table. We did not get any water refills nor were we ever checked on. We were the only other table in there — there was a booth next to us with 2 people who left shortly after we began eating and then another 2 men came in who seemed to work or own the business. Very disappointed today. Waiter seemed like he couldn’t be bothered — but had no qualms about asking for an 18% tip. On a $ 30 lunch for two…

Should have known better. There is NO other pizza besides New Haven.
Waited 15 minutes with elderly parents before you being acknowledged. Tables were left uncleared because it appeared they were short staffed. Tables not really big enough for plates, glasses, and pizza trays.
Bacon topping was crumbly and did not stick to pizza.
Will NOT be back!!!

I finally made it to Grimaldi’s in Woodbridge. My husband and I shared the large chopped salad and medium traditional pizza. Both were delicious and satisfying. The salad was fresh and tasty. The pie was thin and crispy and a little burnt on the edge of the crust. The cheese and sauce were very satisfying. The only reason I’m not giving Grimaldi’s five stars is because their menu is still quite limited. They didn’t have garlic bread or knots, which I love to have with my salad and pizza. However, it is a warm and cozy restaurant with delicious pizza and we will return :-)

I ordered a large cheese with olives, onions, broccoli and spinach. I think the pizza was OK. I wanted to love it but it was Soggy –the crust was thin and that I liked but overall I felt the sauce had no flavor. I like the fresh mozzarella they use but it was not enough maybe next time order extra cheese
This was based on take out order

Delicious pizza from an authentic brick oven. Nice atmosphere and separate small bar. very cozy and nicely decorated for the holidays. Service was fast and pleasant.

I had a very pleasant experience with Grimaldi’s recently. I organized a small group gathering and the owner was very accommodating to my small requests before and the day of the event. As soon as I arrived he was there waiting for me and let me know they had reserved a section of the bar for us. All of the bar staff was extremely attentive. We ordered 2 large pizzas. Food and drinks were fantastic. The location is very convenient as well; right off route 15. I would recommend this place on service alone and food as a bonus.

They are located next to Katz’s Deli (maybe they’re going for an NY-​themed plaza). There is plenty of seating inside, with three different rooms. There is a main dining room, a bar dining room, and a private dining room inside the main dining room. The pizza was great, but I feel there could have been more toppings given the prices paid. The beer selection is decent, and naturally features a tap from New England Brewing Co. (down the street). This place is worth it if you have a groupon, or if you just want to avoid going into the busy downtown New Haven for pizza.

Very good pizza. Love the space.
I first went to the Grimaldis in Brooklyn several years ago and had a fantastic pie. I would say this Grimaldis is similar. The pie came out with slightly burnt edges, nice thin crust… We had the onion and bacon. Awesome. Very enjoyable.

Very friendly staff, was greeted right when we walked in the door by the pizza maker himself! You are able to watch your pizza be crafted, which was entertaining. The pizza (we got the regular with mozzarella… A pizza place is only as good as its cheese pie) was good. Not AS good as Pepe’s or Bar– but it was made very quickly with hardly any wait. The atmosphere is nice, it’s a beautiful place. Many families with kids there too. We used a groupon. The pies themselves are a little overpriced, but with the groupon you can’t go wrong!

I think this place is ridiculously overpriced, but the pizzas are good. Bonus for having a gluten-​free option for a family member. Don’t get me wrong, they serve very good thin crust pizza, but the pricing really turned me off, especially considering the many pizza options in the area. Had my order to go, but it looked like a nice big sit-​down place.
When my gluten intolerant family member comes again, then I’ll order here. Otherwise I’ll go to another place that won’t drain my wallet.

From age 6 to 18 (the «formative years») I lived in New Haven, CT.
An important part of my formation was eating lots of spectacular pizza («ah-​beetz») that New Haven is known for — particularly on Wooster Street, New Haven’s Little Italy.
The New Haven area’s family-​own pizzerias have such strong followings (and partisanship) that national chains such as Pizza Hut and Domino’s have been spectacularly unsuccessful in their attempts to infiltrate the area.
About six months ago, Grimaldi’s opened in Woodbridge, just across the border from New Haven. It uses the space formerly occupied by a Japanese restaurant I liked a lot, and is in the same shopping center as Katz’s Deli, another favorite of mine.
Out of curiosity I stopped in Grimaldi’s shortly after opening. I wanted to see what it was all about, and picked up a takeout menu. I didn’t think I’d ever bother to eat there and frankly I thought it would close soon.
I thought the company was being run by morons with big balls and small brains. Opening up a branch of an out-​of-​town pizzeria in the New Haven area was like the proverbial bringing coal to Newcastle, or selling ice to Eskimos.
Yesterday at around 5:30 I was driving back to my house in Milford after visiting wife Marilyn in Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford. I had some OK food waiting in my fridge, but it was hard to resist the siren call of Katz’s Deli so I got off at Exit 59 and parked my car.
At the last minute I had a second thought: PIZZA!
Since Grimaldi’s was still in business, maybe they could make decent pies. I decided to find out.
I was immediately seated in an attractive dining room dominated by a huge brick oven. When the oven door opened I could see glowing coal inside. It looked like hell, but a nice hell.
A friendly waitress gave me a menu and erected a pizza rack on my table-​for-​one. The menu offered lots of toppings, but I was frustrated that I could not find my current favorites: eggplant and onions.
I mentioned this to the server and she immediately pointed them out. I was having a senior moment («brain fart»). I ordered a medium plain (no mootz, just sauce and a dusting of grated cheese) plus the eggplant and onions.
I don’t dislike cheese, but I was conscious of both health and budget, so the mootz was an easy sacrifice. I’ve never ordered «extra cheese.» The essence of pizza is it’s sauce. I can enjoy good tomato sauce on white bread, an English muffin, a stale bagel or even a finger.
I saw a sign offering lots of beer choices for two bucks each. I asked and was told that they were all bottled beer, and I wanted something special: a draft beer.
I ordered a $ 5 Sam Adams summer something-​or-​other and it quickly arrived in a large, cold glass. This is not the place to debate beer against beer. If it’s cold enough (and/​or if I’m already drunk enough) I’ll enjoy almost any brew (but not urine-​like Rolling Rock or bitter Beck’s). The glass of Sam was perfect and I savored it slowly while my pizza was prepared. I wanted it to last because I was not prepared to invest a second five bucks for a second beer.
I amused myself by reading Business Week and watching the acrobatic pizza-​tossing. (Note: maybe white men can’t jump but black men _​can_​toss.)
Because of the high temperature in the coal oven I thought that my pie would come in about five minutes. It actually took three times that long, but I still had enough beer when it arrived.
The first thing I noticed when the pie was placed on the platform was how pretty it looked. I’ve never thought of pizza as something that could have visual beauty. Taste was all that mattered and traditional New Haven pies are notoriously sloppy, with a random number of irregular slices, dripping oil and charred crust.
The Grimaldi’s pie had none of these characteristics and I was afraid that it might turn out to be «just another pretty face,» with form overriding function. The eggplant slices were arrayed as carefully as a caterer arranging a banquet table. There was obviously a lot of prep time before the pie went into the hot oven.
The crust was thinner than traditional New Haven ah-​beetz, but it was not sloppy thin as at Sally’s, or cracker-​like crisp as at Colony. I could easily fold in longitudinally from crust to point and feed it into my eager mouth.
The taste was as superb as the styling. I love tomatoes and can eat them like others eat apples. The Grimaldi’s secret sauce was rich, pure and very tomato-​y. If that’s not a word, it should be. The thin slices of eggplant and narrow strings of onion were very flavorful and cooked perfectly. Some places kill the veggies on their pizzas, but not Grimaldi’s. The grated cheese actually had both texture and flavor. All too often it adds neither.
So, was this the best pizza I’ve ever tasted? No. Because, counting Grimaldi’s there are now five pizzerias that make the best pizzas I’ve ever tasted. I plan to go back to Grimaldi’s very soon.

We drove from NJ to Maine and have not had better service than what we experienced here. I can’t say enough positive things about Grimaldi’s. If I could give them a 10 out of 5 I would. We order a medium pizza with pepperoni. The pizza had the perfect amount of sauce, the pepperoni was mouth watering, the cheese was authentic (sliced mozzarella not shredded) and the crust was perfect. The service (Beth) was exceptional and awesome. This place is incredible. We met the owner and thanked him for the wonderful food and service. I would recommend this place to anyone.

Beautiful décor, modern and spacious. They also have a nice size bar area on the other side of the dining room. Pizza was very good. We had Italian sausage and roasted red peppers. They make their own mozzarella, sauce and peppers in house. Very, very thin crust. We also had the NY Style cheesecake which was so yummy! Service was excellent, Beth was super attentive to our needs and very knowledgable about the food. We will def be back and bring some friends along next time!

With the best pizza in the area outside of downtown New Haven, this Woodbridge outpost of the Brooklyn pizzeria generally doesn’t disappoint. Is it as good as Pepe’s, Sally’s, or Bar? Nope. Is it better than any of the surrounding pizza places in the Woodbridge/​Westville area and way beyond? Yup.
I have ordered pizza from this spot maybe 3 or 4 times at this point and it has always been solid. The chicken wings are fairly flavorless and and the pizzas aren’t exactly cheap but they are excellent and the quality of ingredients is high.
The really fresh and creamy mozzarella used here is especially good, as is the standard «Regular Pizza» that it comes atop. Don’t ask for a «Plain Pizza» because here that means a pizza with sauce and no cheese. The regular pizza is almost like a margherita with slices of super tasty mozz over a thin layer of tomato sauce and charred crust.
Obviously, if you want the best pizza in New Haven go to Pepe’s. I like Sally’s a lot and have tried it many times but the pizza there (or anywhere else in New Haven) would never beat Pepe’s in a blind taste test. This place is no exception but that doesn’t change the fact that Grimaldi’s serves really great, really well done pizza and is an excellent new addition to the area.

The pizza is pretty good, but it’s definitely not as good as I had hoped. I am a huge fan of Brooklyn pizza and Patsy’s which I think are somehow connected to Grimaldi’s. Brooklyn and Patsy’s are virtually the same, so that’s what I was expecting when I walked into Grimaldi’s and this review is a head to head comparison.
They do get points for making their own mozzarella, but they are very skimpy with it – I ordered extra mozzarella (on two different occasions so it wasn’t a fluke) and their extra mozz isn’t close to regular mozzarella at Brooklyn or Patsy’s. That said, it’s still a pretty good pie, just not a contender for best pizza (my tops around New Haven are Modern, Sally’s, Bar)
Service can be incredibly slow at times. The staff (including management) seem to bicker on the regular at the bar, and they definitely don’t go the extra mile the servers at Brooklyn do (immediately greet you when you walk in, extremely attentive, serve you the first slice). It’s unprofessional to criticize your staff or your boss in public.
Pros: they aren’t cash only, they have a good selection of wine by the glass, and they serve personal size pizzas
Cons: relatively expensive for pizza, light on the cheese, unbelievably slow sometimes, service is just OK