Zelo Pizzeria

Although we had to fight some mean 210 traffic, my boyfriend and I finally tried Zelo Pizzeria in Arcadia. They are notorious for their cornmeal crust and is one of the only restaurants in (more like near) Los Angeles that comes closest to Chicago style deep dish pizza. We arrived around 6:00pm on a Saturday, arriving a little before a tolerable crowd. The place is small, but gives off a warm vibe; the walls are filled with thoughtfully hip art such as some Basquiat, pizza related album covers, and a shrine to Z-boys (skaters).

I was quite hungry and made the smart decision to order the Beet Salad - Fresh beets, roasted walnuts, blue cheese served on a bed of greens with shallot-balsamic  vinaigrette. I read many positive reviews about this salad. And after trying it, I completely agree with the reviews. The mountain of beets are chilled fresh and the walnuts are warm. If this was a movie, the star would be the beets, but the supporting role would be the blue cheese, helping bring the salad together. But, really the full cast deserves credit because the dressing was vinaiGREAT perfect. It’s good that I ordered this too because it came out quickly and was enough to tide me over while we waited for the pizza.

Although they had quite a variety of “gourmet” sounding pizza, I opted for a classic slice of Sausage pizza - Homemade sausage, tomato sauce, marinated green peppers, sauteed onions, mozzarella (like all my pictures please click on the image to see a larger, better version). I ordered the sausage to counter the anticipated sweetness of the cornmeal crust and vegetables. Since it is made fresh to order, we had an awkward waiting period. My poor boyfriend didn’t have a salad and became crankier from hunger by the minute. Words can’t describe how thankful I was when it arrived hot and delicious to the table. The crust was sweet and crunchy.  It was awesome, but I would probably order a cheesier option next time. Since these are loaded slices, 1-2 slices is more than enough.

Ultimately, I think the best plan of action would be to order a variety of pies to go and buy some beers. The atmosphere at Zelo is fun, but pizza and beer at home is sometimes hard to beat. I hope to get the chance to go back again soon to try different toppings (like the Kale or the Corn) and their big puffy Zuccotto dessert. Or, I hope they spread their wings and come out to the west side (wishful thinking).

Zelo Pizzeria
328 E Foothill Blvd
Arcadia, CA 91006
(626) 358-8298