The first NYPD Pizzeria opened in Florida in 1998. Ten years later, business partners Jim Rodriguez and Angelo Zullo were searching for the perfect pizzeria to open in Utah.
"There were no good pizzerias in Utah," Rodriguez said.
Raised by parents who were masters at creating authentic Italian meals, Zullo had his own ideas about what he was looking for.
Together, they traveled to several states, trying dozens of pizzas, until they discovered NYPD Pizzeria.
At the end of 2008, they purchased the area development agreement for Utah and opened their first location in Draper. The Layton location followed in October 2009. They added a third location in West Valley City the following year, and their newest restaurant is scheduled to open in Murray this summer.
Zullo wants customers to know NYPD Pizzeria is more than just a pizza place. The menu includes all kinds of Italian specialty dishes. "One thing we have is great food -- the best you've ever had," Zullo said.
Their recipes are taken from Italian New Yorkers. The dough for the pizza is made on-site from scratch. Some of the most popular combinations include The Hawaiian ($9.99); Traditional Pepperoni ($9); Da Bronx BBQ Chicken Pie ($10.99), made with the house-specialty barbecue sauce; and the Brooklyn Bleu Cheese & Buffalo Chicken Pie ($10.99), grilled chicken over a layer of wing sauce, topped with cheese and blue cheese dressing.
The pizzas have a thin crust and are baked in an imported oven on a Vermont stone, the way traditional New York pizzas are prepared.
Other specialty dishes on the menu include the Fettuccine Alfredo ($8.99), the Stromboli Calzone ($8.99), Astoria Greek Salad ($8.99), Hot Wings ($8.99) and beer ($3).
For dessert, the Zeppoles ($5), fried dough covered in powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar, or the New York Cannoli ($5) are popular picks.
The restaurant offers a 20 percent discount to military and police officers, and also donates 20 percent of the bill to nonprofits that come to the restaurant for business meetings.