Lauded by diners and critics alike, Pizzeria Mozza in Newport Beach, the brainchild of Nancy Silverton, Joseph Bastianich and Mario Batali, will serve its last dish on Oct. 31.
An employee at Mozza Restaurant Group confirmed that Thursday will be its final day.
Opening in August 2011, Pizzeria Mozza, a spinoff of Batali and Silverton’s osteria in L.A., “reset the bar for Italian cuisine in Orange County,” according to food critic Brad A. Johnson‘s 2017 review. More than just a red-sauce joint, Mozza’s menu featured nearly a dozen pizzas, antipasti, salads, pastas and more. Silverton’s pungent sourdough crust, which she perfected while at La Brea Bakery, helped put the pizzeria on O.C.’s culinary map.
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No one at Mozza Restaurant Group, owner of Pizzeria Mozza, as well as Osteria Mozza and Chi Spacca, would respond to questions about why the company wants to shutter its Newport Beach location.
The closing of Mozza’s Newport Beach location will remove Mozza Restaurant Group’s footprint in Orange County, at least for now; Pizzeria Mozza’s Los Angeles and London locations will remain open.
Batali, who fell from grace after a series of sexual assault allegations came to light, was financially severed from Mozza and its other eateries in 2019; the celebrity chef’s financial stakes were bought out by members of the Bastianich family.
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