Grimaldi's on 133 Clinton St. has been warming the hearts and stomachs of Hobokenites for many years. This family owned and operated pizzeria has one of the only coal brick ovens left. There was a time about 60 years ago when many of the restaurants used a coal oven before it became an environmental concern. The coal oven produces their signature bubbling thin crust that locals clamor for.

The atmosphere

The cozy restaurant sits on the corner of Second and Clinton streets. It is decorated like an old style Italian restaurant with red checked tablecloths, comfortable, bottle-green booths, and white sconces on the wall. The walls are painted cream and are adorned with pictures of Hoboken's favorite son, Frank Sinatra.

It is great place to go on nights you don't want to be bombarded with loud music or the bar scene. The only smoke rising in this eatery is the smoke of the steaming pizza pies. And the music is played low in the background - so talking to your dinner date is easy!

The service is friendly and fitting for this casual dining place. Here, the waitresses will bring you whatever you ask for yet they don't hover over you. Customers are free to take as long as they want over dinner.

Antipasto

For starters, we started with the Antipasto. The antipasto, ($9.50), was a nice, light starter before the filling pizza. It was nicely presented with the combination of colors and textures. It came with mozzarella, roasted peppers, salami, olives, and a basket of bread sticks.

The mozzarella is flavorful when combined with the delicious roasted red peppers and the spicy salami. This dish is the perfect size for two.

Other appetizers include: a house salad, ($6.50), with tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and cabbage; and a mozzarella and tomato salad, ($7).

The pizza!

There are two kinds of pizza available with the signature thin crust. They have the red sauce and the white pizza with garlic. The pizza comes in three different sizes: the small, the large, and the personal pizza.

For pizza lovers that are used to the Americanized pizza, you might be a bit surprised by the appearance of Grimaldi's. The thin-crust pizza is charred in some areas - on purpose! The hot coals crisp the bottom of the pie and the crust.

The top of the pizza looks mostly red with the red sauce, which is thick with Italian tomatoes, and there are slices of mozzarella layered on top. We got ours with mushrooms and sliced black olives on one side and crispy pepperoni on the other. The hot pepperoni added to the flavor of the sauce. We topped all our slices with the grated cheese, which gave the pizza a really nice kick, as the cheese was fantastic.

There are other toppings to choose from including: spinach, anchovies, garlic, onions, ricotta, eggplant, sweet roasted peppers, green peppers, broccoli, ham, sausage, extra cheese, extra tomato, and meatballs. A small pizza starts at $13. The toppings are priced from $1 to $4. Other dinners include: calzone, spaghetti and meatballs, and cheese ravioli.

And...

If you can manage dessert after a filling meal of pizza, Grimaldi's offers cannoli, tortoni, spumoni, tartufo, and tiramisu. They offer a selection of sodas (in the bottle or on tap), espresso, cappuccino, and iced tea. Customers that are of age can also select from their selection of beer or house wines, which are available by the glass, carafe, or bottle.

They are open seven days a week. The hours are: Monday to Thursday from 5 to 11 p.m., Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., and Saturday/Sunday from 2 to 11 p.m. All major credit cards are accepted and delivery is available.

Grimaldi's is located at 133 Clinton St. in Hoboken. For more information, please call (201) 792-0800 or fax: (201) 792-5757.