PHOENIX — The Valley’s Crust Restaurant Group is planning to expand this year with new ventures in Mesa and Scottsdale.
A fourth Crust Simply Italian restaurant will be located at The Grid on Main Street, two blocks west of the Mesa Arts Center.
The 8,000-square-foot restaurant with a 2,000-square-foot patio will be the chain’s largest. The project will include an attached speakeasy-style cocktail lounge called The Nightingale, plus a gelato and donut shop called Bombolino. No opening date has been set.
Meanwhile, The Goose speakeasy is expected to open some time in early 2024 next to the original Crust Simply Italian location on Hayden Road north of Via de Ventura in Scottsdale’s McCormick Ranch neighborhood.
How large is the Valley’s Crust Restaurant Group?
The four new venues will increase Crust Restaurant Group’s footprint to 11 locations. The group also is looking to launch concepts outside the Italian food sphere in the West Valley.
“Since opening the first Crust restaurant in 2007, we’ve learned so much over the years, and as we’ve grown, I’ve had a goal to open 10 locations,” Michael Merendino, Crust Restaurant Group founder and owner, said in a press release. “Things have changed and moved quickly over the last few months, and we’re excited for what this first quarter will bring.”
Of the three Crust Simply Italian restaurants, the Scottsdale location is the only one that doesn’t yet have an adjoining speakeasy. Keeping with an avian theme, the Chandler cocktail lounge is called The Ostrich, and the Gilbert version is The Blue Heron.
In the fall of 2023, the company debuted a new concept called Crust Pizzeria at two former Artichoke Basille’s Pizza locations, on Baseline Road east of Rural Road in Tempe and on 16th Street north of Bethany Home Road in Phoenix.
Crust Simply Italian, which has three Arizona locations in Scottsdale, Chandler, and Gilbert, will join a handful of other tenants coming to The Trailhead in Peoria. Later this month, the development will welcome Einstein Bros. Bagels and Robeks Fresh Juices and Smoothies. The Trailhead will also be home to DIP Nail Bar, V’s Barbershop, and Pac Dental, which will open this spring, joining Eye Studio Peoria and AZ Vitality med-spa, which opened last month.
“Tenants of this caliber are a win for Peoria residents who have been clamoring for a quality dining experience near their homes,” said Jim Pederson, founder and chairman of Pederson Group, the project’s developer. “But that’s not all. We anticipate announcing additional eateries joining this line-up in the next several months. The other part is the lush landscaping, fountain, and other amenities that will make the development a central gathering place for residents and visitors.”
The project, valued at over $100 million, is being developed, owned, and managed by Pederson Group. The architect for the project is Butler Design Group, and Campbell Development is the contractor. The Trailhead is located in the geographic center of Peoria and is named after the area’s trail system. This development will be the commercial centerpiece of the stunning and vibrant Happy Valley Corridor, which is witnessing the development of over 3,000 new homes, joining more than 56,000 existing households in the surrounding area. It will feature bike and pedestrian-friendly paths, ideal for dog walkers and hikers, seamlessly connecting to nearby neighborhoods and the pristine Sunrise Mountain Preserve.
