Grimaldi's Pizzeria

7131 W. Ray Road
Chandler, AZ 85226


We arrived at Grimaldi's at 6:00 and were seated immediately. It was the birthday of one of our party and he had a coupon for $20 off for his birthday. 

Drinks were served in a timely manner. For soft drinks they serve Pepsi products. The also serve iced tea as well as passion fruit iced tea. Our birthday boy had a Green Apple Sangria ($8). I personally did not care for it, but he seemed to enjoy it.

Two of our party ordered salads. The small Caesar salad ($8) was nicely done, but the Caprese ($9) left items to be desired. The tomato would not be ripe for another week or two, and the balsamic vinegar was a cheap knockoff.

On to the pizza's. The birthday boy ordered an 18" buffalo chicken pizza ($25). Testing a piece of the chicken, I found it to be dry and very vinegary. The buffalo sauce was there, but not in any quantity nor very spicy. The garden salad (veggie pizza) in 18" was adequate ($24). For myself I ordered the 12" white garlic pizza with mushrooms ($15). I found the cheese to be quite hard and the pizza seemed devoid of sauce.

Unfortunately, as a former New Yorker who has eaten at the original Grimaldi's this establishment just does not measure up to the original standards. 

While the place was clean and service was fair, the pizza's just aren't that good. Never before in my life have I spent $88 for pizza for 4 adults and a child. Add in a tip and you are easily over $100.

2 stars

Nobuo at the Teeter House - CLOSED

Every once in awhile, if you are very lucky, you will enjoy a meal that is truly noteworthy and which will be a long time in your memory. A meal in which you can recall each of the flavors and how it enhanced the meal. Eating at Nobuo was such an experience.

Companion and I visited Nobuo during Restaurant Week, and had an outstanding experience and meal. Our waiter, David helped create such a wonderful experience that I haven't come down from all the smiling I did yet!

We were seated promptly at a fairly sparse table, set in what I would call traditional tones. A candle, two black rocks, and two glasses of water.

Companion started off with a bottle of Ramune, a strawberry flavored drink bottled in Japan. I started off with a glass of Junmai Ginjo Hakkaisan sake. It was as good as anything I had while I was in Japan, and had beautiful legs as in a fine wine. I should mention the amazing assortment of Japanese beers on the menu. I last saw this big an assortment in Tokyo.

As a prix fixe menu, there are still a number of choices available, though not the usual amount that one would see on the regular menu.

Companion ordered some Hamachi, which is an optional extra on the back of the menu. The fish just melted on your tongue and was obviously from a premium fish. I ordered stuffed squash blossoms from the extra menu, and dare I say, they were much better than the ones I make. Perhaps it was the streak of curry powder on the plate that one could dip the blossom into. I don't really know except that it was delicious.

Next came Bento Boxes. Both companion and I had boxes with salad and with cold rice that I think was marinated in a yuzu vinaigrette. While I am not much for eating cold rice, in this case an exception had to be made. The rice was perfectly cooked and the vinaigrette seemed to play with your palate while you ate it.

Companions Bento Box contained 3 different types of fish including one that was cooked en papillote, where the fish is placed in a parchment packet and then baked until tender and moist. Companion deemed it to be one of the best pieces of fish she had ever eaten, though there was no sign of herbs which are usually used in this preparation.

My Bento Box was a meat preparation which included some short rib slices, pork belly on a Chinese steam bun, and a most wonderful preparation of chicken with a sauce that was sheer perfection. Though I was totally full, I was sad that I hadn't tried a bit of everything on the menu.

Last was dessert. In Japan, dessert is usually a piece of fresh fruit if anything, but in this case Nobuo gave a nod to American eating habits and provided actual desserts but with a Japanese twist. Companion had a deconstructed dessert consisting of several sorbet/ice cream combinations including a true matcha green tea ice cream which totally cleansed the palate. For myself, I had a sesame pudding with sweet almonds and a bit of a cookie. It was smooth and tasty with a flavor of sesame that was perfect and not overpowering.

I would be remiss if I did not mention David, our waiter. He was available anytime we had a need, and carefully explained each dish to us as it was presented. A good waiter can make or break a meal, and it this case, he made it happen.

5 stars for outstanding food, great service, and excellent cleanliness

Alexi's Grill and Catering

Alexi’s Grill & Catering

3550 N. Central Ave

Phoenix, AZ  85012

As part of Restaurant Week, companion and I dined at Alexi’s. Restaurant Week features prix fixe menu’s with limited selections. Some restaurants use this week as an opportunity to introduce new customers to their food selections, while a few others use it to take advantage of unknowing customers. Fortunately, Alexi’s does not take advantage of their customers and provides a nice meal for your dollars.

Drinks were brought quickly and we were brought a basket of warm bread sticks along with some nice salt butter. Many restaurants serve unsalted butter, which just does not have the taste that many people are looking for.

Companion started off with the Calamari appetizer. Many places destroy a wonderful appetizer by over cooking it. Here there were nice rings and tentacles lightly battered and fried to perfection. For myself, I ordered the Caprese Salad, which was made with some wonderful buffalo mozzarella, ripe tomatoes, and a chiffonade of basil. Some excellent olive oil and a dash of balsamic completed the dish nicely.

Next, cups of bean soup arrived. This was no ordinary bean soup, did not come from a can, and did not come from the freezer. This soup was made from scratch with love and attention to detail. Tiny canelé beans with small diced carrots enhanced with a beautiful broth type soup. No heavy glop here, if they offered this soup canned, I’d be buying it by the case.

For the main course, companion ordered the Lobster Ravioli in a cream sauce. Five nice sized ravioli’s gently swimming in a pool of excellent cream sauce. Very rich and quite satisfying.

I ordered the Pork Chop cooked pink, as the USDA now allows pork to be cooked. A good sized chop on the bone arrived perfectly cooked as ordered. The chop was accompanied by al dente broccoli, roasted baby potatoes, and some outstanding sweet carrots that were stars of the show. Companion kept stealing some from my plate!

Dessert consisted of Cheesecake with macerated strawberries, and Tiramisu.

Service was excellent, and cleanliness even to the outside areas was in evidence. Dings – only one – when any restaurant serves a nice piece of meat, be it steak or chop, it is wrong to serve a serrated knife to the person dining. The serrated knife only serves to tear the meat apart instead of gently slicing it into edible portions. It bothered me to look at my knife after cutting this excellent chop and find pieces of meat stuck to the blade.

4 stars for service, quality of food, and cleanliness