Old-Time Toppings, Tropical Fruit Too

When Hank Damavandi moved to California in 1967, armed with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, he discovered he couldn’t land a job. So he flew in his secret weapon: his grandmother from Sicily.

Grandma Damavandi had owned restaurants in Palermo, and her savvy helped him with Hank’s Pizza, a tiny joint he opened on a dilapidated stretch of Imperial Highway near La Cienega. It became a favorite haunt of aerospace workers in the vicinity. The construction of the Century Freeway put an end to that Hank’s in 1987, but by then, Damavandi had opened a new, much larger Hank’s Pizza in Torrance, which continues to thrive.

Those familiar with the Spartan original might be stunned to see the new Hank’s. Outside the entrance is a neatly maintained plot of roses, pansies and marigolds. Inside, the dining room is warmly decorated with wood paneling and rugs. A large, pleasant patio has climbing vines and a fresco depicting the four seasons.

Despite the name, the dining highlight at Hank’s Pizza is the impressive salad bar. For $6.25, this all-you-can-eat affair is like taking a lesson in tropical-fruit appreciation. Among the offerings: passion fruit, with dark purple skin, creamy, mustard-colored sweet-tart flesh and edible black seeds; cherimoya--a large green oval with a custard-like flesh reminiscent of pineapples and mangoes; pepino--a New Zealand fruit that tastes of melons; feijoa, with a strawberry-like taste. And that’s not even mentioning blood oranges, honey tangerines, papayas, mangoes, kiwi fruit, dates and figs.

Apart from that salad bar, Hank’s offers Mussolini grande, ($7.95), a casserole of sausage, meatballs, bell peppers and mushrooms, covered with mozzarella and baked.

As for the pizza, Hank’s version is loaded with whole milk mozzarella and topped with old-time favorites: sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms. One doubts that Grandma Damavandi would stand for pizza with Thai chicken or smoked salmon.