grimaldi vs grimaldi´s
A pizza’s a round bit of food consisting of three or four ingredients put on a mass made of flour and water. But it’s no joking matter in NY. There are
even people who take the way they make pizzas as a matter of pride. This is Patsy Grimaldi’s story. The first pizza hut was opened in New York in 1905. That was when Gennaro Lombardi, an immigrant from Naples, started making pizzas in the back of his food shop in Little Italy. After working with Lombardi for a time, Patsy Grimaldi opened Patsy´s in East Harlem in 1933. Lanciery offered her teenage nephew a job there. He was thirteen when he started at Patsy Grimaldi’s pizza hut. And he didn’t leave until 1990.
That year, with the family’s permission, he opened Grimaldi’s in Brooklyn, at 19, Old Fulton Street, just a few feet from the waterfront. It soon became pizza fans’ new Mecca. In 1996, just after reaching the age of 66, Patsy and his wife Carol decided that they had had enough.
And then the Ciolly family made an appearance. Frank Ciolly bought the pizza hut. Patsy only set one condition: if the business was going to
carry on using his name, then he was going to supervise how the pizzas were made. Ciolly agreed to that, but they also agreed on a peculiar clause: for the following 15 years Patsy would not be able to work in any pizza hut other than Grimaldi’s.
At first they got on well, but then the Ciolly clan started to dislike Patsy’s visits and grumbling more and more. Patsy wasn’t at all happy about the way Grimaldi’s was going. The Ciollys started up a chain of pizza huts using the Grimaldi’s brand. Things came to ahead. They banned Patsy from going to the restaurants which
had his name on them.
Patsy tried to forget about everything over the following years. He and his wifetook a trip to Italy every year. They took their grandchildren to baseball games and started to fill their house up with cats. And they carried on making pizzas in their coal stove at home. And, meanwhile, the Ciolly clan carried on opening more and more Grimaldi’s. New York, Las Vegas, Miami, Los Angeles,..
In 2005 Ciolly started having problems with the owner of the building where the original restaurant was in Old Fulton Street. One law suit after another was brought and there was real chaos in the courts. Patsy saw his chance to take his vengeance. The clause in the contract he had signed when he sold Grimald i’s had just expired and, at the age of 81, he got in touch with the building’s owner and rented the shop next to Grimaldi’s and used his Sicilian mother’s name, Julianna, to open a new pizza hut.
The two next-door pizza huts have never really got on together. The Ciolly family took Patsy to court, but lost. Even so, in the Italian family way, and like some scene from The Sopranos, when Frank Ciolly died of a heart attack four years ago, Patsy walked in Grimaldi´s after 20 years and gave the family his condolences.
Nowadays, due to his age, Patsy can no longer take every pizza out of the oven as he used to, but his successor, Matt Grolan, is there to do that for him. Matt Grolan is a pizza nerd. He’s being going to the pizza hut ever since Patsy opened it in 1990. Since then he’s travelled with Patsy and Carol and learned the pizzas’ secrets. He’s now Patsy’s heir to Julianna’s.
Pizzas are a serious matter in New York. And a tasty one. The one we tried had salad rocket, kalamata olives, riccota pe pperoni, mushrooms and anchovies on it. We won’t forget it.
even people who take the way they make pizzas as a matter of pride. This is Patsy Grimaldi’s story. The first pizza hut was opened in New York in 1905. That was when Gennaro Lombardi, an immigrant from Naples, started making pizzas in the back of his food shop in Little Italy. After working with Lombardi for a time, Patsy Grimaldi opened Patsy´s in East Harlem in 1933. Lanciery offered her teenage nephew a job there. He was thirteen when he started at Patsy Grimaldi’s pizza hut. And he didn’t leave until 1990.
That year, with the family’s permission, he opened Grimaldi’s in Brooklyn, at 19, Old Fulton Street, just a few feet from the waterfront. It soon became pizza fans’ new Mecca. In 1996, just after reaching the age of 66, Patsy and his wife Carol decided that they had had enough.
And then the Ciolly family made an appearance. Frank Ciolly bought the pizza hut. Patsy only set one condition: if the business was going to
carry on using his name, then he was going to supervise how the pizzas were made. Ciolly agreed to that, but they also agreed on a peculiar clause: for the following 15 years Patsy would not be able to work in any pizza hut other than Grimaldi’s.
At first they got on well, but then the Ciolly clan started to dislike Patsy’s visits and grumbling more and more. Patsy wasn’t at all happy about the way Grimaldi’s was going. The Ciollys started up a chain of pizza huts using the Grimaldi’s brand. Things came to ahead. They banned Patsy from going to the restaurants which
had his name on them.
Patsy tried to forget about everything over the following years. He and his wifetook a trip to Italy every year. They took their grandchildren to baseball games and started to fill their house up with cats. And they carried on making pizzas in their coal stove at home. And, meanwhile, the Ciolly clan carried on opening more and more Grimaldi’s. New York, Las Vegas, Miami, Los Angeles,..
In 2005 Ciolly started having problems with the owner of the building where the original restaurant was in Old Fulton Street. One law suit after another was brought and there was real chaos in the courts. Patsy saw his chance to take his vengeance. The clause in the contract he had signed when he sold Grimald i’s had just expired and, at the age of 81, he got in touch with the building’s owner and rented the shop next to Grimaldi’s and used his Sicilian mother’s name, Julianna, to open a new pizza hut.
The two next-door pizza huts have never really got on together. The Ciolly family took Patsy to court, but lost. Even so, in the Italian family way, and like some scene from The Sopranos, when Frank Ciolly died of a heart attack four years ago, Patsy walked in Grimaldi´s after 20 years and gave the family his condolences.
Nowadays, due to his age, Patsy can no longer take every pizza out of the oven as he used to, but his successor, Matt Grolan, is there to do that for him. Matt Grolan is a pizza nerd. He’s being going to the pizza hut ever since Patsy opened it in 1990. Since then he’s travelled with Patsy and Carol and learned the pizzas’ secrets. He’s now Patsy’s heir to Julianna’s.
Pizzas are a serious matter in New York. And a tasty one. The one we tried had salad rocket, kalamata olives, riccota pe pperoni, mushrooms and anchovies on it. We won’t forget it.
