Dirty Pepperoni—pizza concept from Dirtbags California—coming to DTLB

It shall be called Dirty Pepperoni, Long Beach.

The boys behind Dirtbags California will head up the pizza concept in a neighborhood rich with stellar pies. You have The 4th Horseman, Milana’s, and Baby Bros. Pizza—all right around the corner. And this is while the city’s overall pizza game has exploded over the past decade, particularly with the newer additions of Due Fiori and Marlena.

So what is Dirty Pepperoni?

The crew behind The Dirty Pepperoni? That’d be Michael Uriarte—better known to most as MikeyLoco—along with Lev Kim and Tod Somerville. Uriate runs Dirtbags California, the unapologetically gritty Harley-Davidson service shop tucked into the heart of North Long Beach. Lev and Tod, longtime local fixtures in the hospitality scene, round out the trio. Between Mikey’s no-frills aesthetic and the others’ seasoned chops in food and drink, The Dirty Pepperoni “isn’t just another concept,” according to Michael. It’s far more with his emotions and money bound up in a dream he never thought he’d be chasing. It’s a hopeful collision of culture, hustle, and homegrown know-how.

The sole hope? That it turns around what has otherwise been a rather cursed space for the East Village Arts District.

It isn’t just the recent closure of the middling Water’s Edge that makes the Downtown community joke that the corner of Broadlind that Dirty Pepperoni is moving into is “cursed.” And it wasn’t just the closure before it, that of the underrated katsu burger gem that was Burger Daddy, which was supposed to reopen at the Broadlind but has yet to see any movement forward.

It’s the full series of its closure history. Multiple coffeehouses—including the underrated Green House space—and restaurants—including a Middle Eastern joint dubbed Asha—have caused the entire series of closures, which have led to a lack of stability. And that lack of stability looks odd when District Wine has been serving the community across the street for 15 years.

Dirty Pepperoni will be located at 149 Linden Ave.