Popular Sacramento pizza restaurant closes after more than 40 years. ‘Heartbreaking news’
A beloved Sacramento restaurant credited with introducing Chicago-style pizza to the capital city abruptly closed its doors after more than 40 years in business.
Zelda’s Original Gourmet Pizza served customers for the last time at 1415 21st St. in midtown Sacramento on Saturday, Aug. 31, the restaurant announced via social media.
“After decades of serving Sacramento, we have made the difficult decision to close our doors,” restaurant representatives wrote in a Facebook post on Saturday. “We are forever grateful for each and every person who walked through our door and supported us through every up and down.”
News of the closure came months after Zelda’s owner Kerry Matthews announced he was selling the restaurant after running it for nearly 20 years.
Matthews, son of Zelda’s founder Zelda Breslin, told The Sacramento Bee in April that he was selling the pizzeria to someone who had worked for the restaurant for 40 years.
“Nothing will change” with the sale of Zelda’s, he told The Bee at the time. “It would be a win win for everybody.”
Zelda’s announced on Sunday, Aug. 4, that it was switching exclusively to cash-only to-go orders.
Restaurant representatives could not be immediately reached for comment via phone on Tuesday, Sept. 3.
What is Zelda’s Original Gourmet Pizza?
Zelda’s Original Gourmet Pizza was founded by Breslin in the late 1970s.
Breslin, an Illinois native, perfected her deep dish recipe at Pizzeria Uno in Chicago, The Bee previously reported.
According to The Bee’s archives, locals were slow to accept Chicago-style pizza — forcing Breslin and her husband, Edward J. Breslin, consider declaring bankruptcy at one point due to a dearth of customers.
“Californians didn’t like thick, deep-dish pizza,” Zelda Breslin’s sister Linda Ellington told The Bee the year Zelda died. “They were used to picking up little pieces served on tissue paper.
Over the decades, Zelda’s became one of the most popular pizzerias in the Sacramento area, enjoying an average rating of 3.5 stars on review site Yelp.
“We are incredibly proud of what Zelda created and the legacy that continued after her,” restaurant representatives wrote in the Facebook post.
What was on the menu at Sacramento restaurant?
Zelda’s Original Gourmet Pizza specialized in cheesy, thick-crust pizzas with classic toppings such as sausage and pepperoni — sold whole and by the slice.
The restaurant also served up specialty pies such as the “Everything” with sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, green peppers, onions and anchovies, or the Spinoccoli, which featured broccoli, seasoned spinach, fresh tomato slices and three kinds of cheese.
Other menu offerings included appetizers, sandwiches, salads and pasta.
Locals react to popular midtown pizzeria’s closure
Locals reacted on social media to news of the restaurant’s closure with a mix of sorrow and frustration.
“This is heartbreaking news,” Facebook user Steven Keylon commented on Zelda’s Facebook post announcing the closure.
“Zelda’s was one of my favorite places growing up, and I would visit every time I came back,” Keylon wrote before asking the restaurant to publish its recipes “so we can all try to attempt your magic at home.”
Facebook commenter Steve Vanoni called Zelda’s “one of my favorite Sacramento places.”
“Damn, I will miss it,” he added.
On Reddit, posters described Zelda’s as an old-school pizza joint that struggled to keep up with the times.
“Like it or not, Zelda’s outlasted many popular and trendy pizza joints,” one Reddit user wrote in response to a Friday, Aug. 30 post about the restaurant shutting. “Although the food wasn’t good enough for some people, it was exactly what many generations of customers wanted. As a long-standing local food institution, it has been cherished by many regulars over all these years ...”
“I will truly miss going there with a friend or two, getting margaritas, wings and a pie,” Reddit user kerrytampas wrote. “Also, it was always a great birthday spot. Really sad.”
