Zelda's Original Gourmet Pizza — Restaurant in Sacramento

I was here with a guest BEFORE the recent closing the bar/cash only/to go only announcement. Vegetarian pie was mediocre, took forever (apparently par for course for this kind of pizza), we were repeatedly pressured to get a salad (we didn't figuring there would be enough veggies in the vegetable pizza, there weren't, quite cheap and spare with the veg), and the garlic bread was flat out mediocre and a lazy ripoff.

Anyway, I wasn't going to write this review at all because I'm not big on deep dish to begin with, but even my guest (who likes deep dish) agreed that the veg pie and the garlic bread were mediocre and NOT CHEAP. It was so mediocre I was not going to review and was relatively confident the place would fail. Then I started seeing several articles about this place on Facebook with the nerve of this place's social media trying to drum up sympathy for their costs of doing business and prior mismanagement. Repeated comments whining about how the end may be near.

Let's be real clear. NO ONE IS ENTITLED TO A BUSINESS, especially when the product is mediocre. Literally seemed like the bar was holding the place up, so let's nix that 1 and only moneymaker. Makes sense (eye roll). Also, cash only places definitely suffer for that decision, every business has to deal with transaction fees... so you aren't special there.

I think the downfall is this: riding on OLD laurels & being a tourist trap attraction relying on "tradition" rather than putting out remotely decent food. They are definitely trading on lore, Midtown location, and (dark, kind of dirty) ambience, so let's take the dining in out of the experience (eye roll). Sounds like they're shooting themselves in the foot and then are angry that people don't want a heavy, greasy, mediocre meal sitting in the dark.

The bar is literally all you have to save this place. And I don't even drink saying that, but my guest's drink was a comically tiny ripoff.

I'm an aspiring restaurant consultant. I'm tired of giving guidance in reviews for free. Watch all of "Kitchen Nightmares" or any Gordon Ramsay shows, and try to learn something. Again, I went BEFORE any announcements of closing the dining room, maybe 2 weeks before. It was so mediocre I wouldn't have wasted my time or breath on this review if not for the obnoxious, entitled replies on the part of the restaurant on Facebook news articles about the situation. Fire your social media person, they have a tin ear with no understanding of what it is to be a customer. Comments are very patronizing. I love going to local businesses (you can see that all over my profile), but not ENTITLED ones. Try humility to retain customers instead of harping on "but we've been here so long."

TLDR- Once again, NO ONE is entitled to a business, I literally don't care "how long you've been around," etc. I care how I'm getting served today. And it was mediocre. Also the multiple comments by the restaurant on Facebook claiming you "haven't raised prices since 2007" and your food is "cheaper than other Sac pizza" are also flat out false, we'd love our $50+ back for 1 veg pie, 1 small awful "garlic bread" that obviously used margarine and garbage quality bread, and 1 small, laughably small, non-pint of beer. I'd say that wasn't a "cheap" meal. Basically calling your customers cheap and being profoundly UNGRATEFUL for their business (and generosity, given these prices) ISN'T a good look. Too many Sacramento businesses share this mentality. They never seem to notice they may have "customers," but not REPEAT customers.

Go ahead and fail, you're seemingly doing everything you can to fail. The bar is all you have, mess with that. Deep dish isn't easy to eat on the go, so eliminate seated dining. Maybe you should have thrown in the towel a long time ago. I fear for the Sacramentans who think this food is good...

In all my time being in Sacramento I have never felt the need to write a review until I walked into this place. My friends and I were excited to try this place, but as soon as we sat down everything was off to a bad start. Clearly the waitress was not having a good day and showed the lowest level of customer service I've ever seen. It's as though we were bothering her by being there. Seems like this is a recurring incident since several other reviews state the same experience. Her attitude was simply rude, we barely sat down for less than 5 mins and she says, "do you know what you want already?" Instead of saying, "Hi, how are you all doing, have you been here before?, do you need help with the menu?" I mean come on basic customer service skills. ON TOP of that we had been waiting for almost an 1hr and other customers who walked in after us seemed to be getting their food before us. Keep in mind we had never been here before, so if there was an easier way of ordering we were not aware and that's something the waitress should have explained. While we're waiting we decided to buy some drinks to make up for the long wait and unfortunately one of our friends didn't have his ID. He had drank less than half of beer from the cup. The waitress comes back puts my friend on the spot cutting off our group conversation and rudely demands for his ID, which he did not have and we understand she was doing her job. Except that the situation was poorly handled by the waitress and even the owner had the same ill-mannered behavior. He threatened our group by stating that we were putting his, and I quote "$40K liquor license in jeopardy." If he was SO concerned for his liquor license he should hire a new bartender who did not ID me at the bar, someone who looks 2x younger than my friend. We gave this place several chances before we decided to leave.

The owner needs to recheck his attitude before making snarky remarks on yelp reviews because according to him, "we deserved the day we had."

Welp newsflash bud I'm glad we wasted your pizza because that's the type of day...

Ordered a large combo Pizza last night. Waited in line outside the back door for over 15 minutes with several others. The older man was the only only person serving waiting customers. He was rude, unorganized, slow with horrible body language that shouted disgust for the irritated waiting customers. When called to the window, while he ordered me and others waiting to keep 6 foot distancing. He actually backed up into the bar area, stopping service to those waiting in line, until we all separated to 6 feet. He called my name, handed me the pizza, and presented the bill. I ordered a side salad and I asked for the salad, like others before me had to do. Delays while the salad was being made. The pizzas were stacked on a shelf getting cold while his inefficiency and horrible attitude slowed everything down to the point where my ordered was now cold.

During a brief conversation with him, found out he is the new owner when he complained about no help, masking requirements of staff and greatly renegotiated reduced rent! I have been a patron of Zelda's since they opened in the late seventies and am shocked how far downhill this landmark has spiraled to the bottom. The Covid mandates mess and this owner's reaction to it has apparently made this small business unviable to me as a patron. The service is atrocious. The pizza had few toppings, handed to me cold, very little sauce, over baked crust, salad haphazardly assembled with few ingredients that were too finely chopped. and unripened tomatoes.

There are many other choices for pizza where there owners are gracious, pleased for your business and deliver delicious hot food even because of the same governmental demands they also face. It is unfortunate Zeldas has devolved so far and how this owner, that replaced the hard working and so friendly Zelda , has not kept her historic food quality and service up to standards Sacramento has enjoyed since the late 1970's.

Another tradition on Friday night destroyed by California's...