Courtesy of Justin Piazza
Audio By Carbonatix
An acclaimed Valley pizzaiolo is set to make his return to downtown Phoenix this summer.
Justin Piazza, the chef who wowed diners and Food Network star Guy Fieri with his wood-fired pies for nearly two decades, will open a new pizzeria on Grand Avenue and McKinley Street. Grandioso is anticipated to open its doors on July 15.
Piazza was behind the titular La Piazza Al Forno in Glendale, which he opened with his dad and former wife in 2007. The popular pizzeria regularly landed on local best lists and was featured on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” four times.
Over time, the Piazza empire grew to include downtown’s La Piazza PHX and La Piazza Romana in Avondale, both of which subsequently closed due to the pandemic. The chef departed his remaining restaurant, La Piazza al Forno, in late 2023. The restaurant then closed in July 2025.
In the meantime, Piazza opened What Up, Dough? in Burbank, California. Now back in the Valley, the tatted, fast-talking chef and restaurateur says this new restaurant will be his “life’s work.”
“I’m elevating what I did before,” he says. “(Grandioso) is going to be the best of what I have to offer.”
Courtesy of Justin Piazza
What to expect at Grandioso
Grandioso will feature New York, Roman, Detroit and tavern-style pizzas. The large, bubbly New York, thick square Roman and sauce-on-top Detroit styles will be available by the slice or the whole pie.
Smoked and baked wings, salads and sandwiches will round out Grandioso’s menu, which Piazza will offer for dinner and late night eats.
The 25-seat pizzeria will have a dive-bar feel, Piazza says, with a drinks menu of canned beers and cocktails, plus a pool table, jukebox and murals inside and out. There will also be TVs for watching sports, and Grandioso may host DJs on weekends.
“I want it to be a neighborhood place where people want to come and hang out,” Piazza says.
The formerly cobalt-blue home to Thor’s Skyr is now painted black and white. Piazza commissioned artist AztecSmurf to paint the marquee. It features Grandioso in old-English-style lettering, with hands holding a slice of pizza and a rosary in prayer, rising above the name.
Piazza jokes that landing in the Historic Grand Avenue arts district is a natural fit because all of his tattoos make him a “walking piece of art.”
“Downtown, I’ve missed since I had to leave,” he says, “and it just fits me.”
Though Piazza’s previous restaurants have used his name, for this pizzeria, he wanted something that nodded to the neighborhood. It doesn’t hurt that in Italian, it means grand or impressive.
“It’s the best of everything,” he says. “I’m at a point in my life and in my career with what I’ve done that this is going to be the best I’ve ever given.”
Grandioso
Opens on July 15
1229 Grand Ave.
