As the saying goes: when one door closes, another opens. This time, it's literal.
Last week we saw what looked like the permanent closure of Seasons of Japan at Westpark Plaza in Irvine at Alton and Culver. This week, right across the way in the same parking lot, MOD Pizza (which we blogged about a few months ago) is having its grand opening, today at 5 p.m.
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Not only that, they're giving out free pizzas. The first 52 people in line will get a pizza on the house while 100% of the night's proceeds will go to benefit the Irvine Public Schools Foundation. There will also be drawings for prizes, including free pizza for a year.
MOD Pizza, as you might have already guessed by now, is cut from the same cloth as the other build-your-own, assembly-line pizza shops we've seen of late. Think 800 Degrees, Pielogy, Blaze, and Pizza Press. MOD comes from the Seattle Area, but that doesn't stop it from offering a so-called “Calexico” pizza, which is topped with mozzarella, gorgonzola, chicken, jalapenos, hot Buffalo sauce, and MOD red sauce.
According to the menu that Anne Marie snapped a picture of last night when she was there, a six-inch pie retails for $4.77 pre-tax, which means you will need about $5.15 in your pocket if you just happen to be the 53rd person in line.
3965 Alton Pkwy., Irvine, CA 92606, (949)265-7770; http://modpizza.com
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Before becoming an award-winning restaurant critic for OC Weekly in 2007, Edwin Goei went by the alias “elmomonster” on his blog Monster Munching, in which he once wrote a whole review in haiku.