Michael Merendino knows good New York pizza.
“I grew up in my father’s pizzeria on Great Neck, Long Island, New York, so I would say I was born into it,” he says.
Now a Valley resident, Merendino owns Crust Restaurant Group and has several scratch Italian dining destinations across the Valley, including Crust Simply Italian and Crust Pizzeria.
He opened his newest Crust Pizzeria location this past August in Tempe, at 1120 E. Baseline Road.
“We always had an eye for expansion and had looked at Tempe for quite some time,” he explains. “When the opportunity came up, we jumped all over it.”
The restaurant is a classic NY pizzeria, with a modern-day twist.
“We do slices of pizza, great pasta, salads, and classics like Chicken Parm,” Merendino explains. “Our sandwiches are two-handed, East Coast-style, and everything is homemade. We also have wings, and individual and 20-inch pizzas. There’s also a full bar with barrel-aged cocktails, espresso martinis on tap, and great beer and wine selections.”
And while all the items are popular, one of the most popular is a direct nod to New York—the Upstate New Yorkers Wings, which are tossed in house Buffalo sauce, bleu cheese crumbles, pickled red onions, potato sticks, and are topped with ranch dressing.
Merendino shares that the location is offering an order of wings and a 20-inch NY pie for $25.
“I always ask guests to dine in and try our pizza in the store and out of the oven,” he says. “My team rocks, and we all push each other to get better and better as we go! We try to put out an incredible value in our food and drinks and we are all scratch. I hope you come in and give us a try. We really would like to be a long-term part of the neighborhood.”
“We do slices of pizza, great pasta, salads, and classics like Chicken Parm.”