Customers wait hours for one last slice of Zelda's Pizza in midtown Sacramento
SACRAMENTO – A beloved midtown Sacramento staple, Zelda's Gourmet Pizza, officially closed its doors for the last time Saturday night. The owner cited financial complications are the reason behind the closure.
There was quite a big turnout from the community, the line wrapped around the side of the building, with some people waiting hours to get their hands on a final slice.
"It is a staple and I love Zelda's. I've been coming here since I was a little girl," said Sacramento resident Shawn Oneil.
It's a story we kept hearing. Mostly everyone we talked with had fond memories decades in the making at Zelda's Pizza.
"It's been around a long time. And when I worked in the downtown area it was a place we would frequent," said Sacramento resident Barbara Fisher.
"Oh yeah, since 1978. Since I was a kid," said another Sacramento resident Scott Hyatt.
Now Zelda's is closing up shop. A Facebook post by the owner notified the public of its abrupt closure.
"I honestly woke up this morning and said hey let's get some Zelda's, just thinking it was going to be take out, not realizing it was going to be the final sad last day," said Oneil.
"When my mom passed 18 years ago, I took over the business," said Zelda's son and owner of Zelda's Pizza Kerry Matthews.
Matthews says he had to make the hard decision to close down due to financial complications.
"We kinda got behind so we tried to do takeout, but the bills kept piling up faster than we could pay them," he said.
Matthews says the aging equipment and inconsistent foot traffic are both playing a role in the closure. CBS13 asked him what he thought about the final night's turnout.
"I'm kind of impressed but also kinda sad because if they would've been here in the last few months, we might not be in this spot. But, it's a pretty sad day," said Matthews.
Matthews says they planned to be open for takeout until 9 p.m., but the pizza went fast and they had to turn people away early.
"We stopped answering our phones at quarter to five, we couldn't keep up," said Matthews.
Hyatt said he thinks his pizza will be worth the two-hour wait.
The line wrapped around the building, but people didn't seem to mind the wait to get one last slice of Zelda's.
"I want to thank every one of our customers for the last 47 years for supporting us. We love ya, I appreciate it," said Matthews.
The owner says he made the decision to close Zelda's this past Thursday.