Food and Drink, The Daily Feed

FREE FOOD ALERT (For a Year): Fuel Pizza

Photo courtesy of ekelly80
174/365
courtesy of ekelly80

No need to re-read that headline; you read the most epic free food alert right the first time. Today marks the opening of DC’s first Fuel Pizza & Wings, and the first 50 customers will receive free food at Fuel for a full year. My bet is you should start lining up now.

The grand opening runs today from noon til 6 PM. If you’re not one of the first 50 customers, don’t worry–you’ll still be able to taste some complimentary dishes from the menu.

The NY-style pizzeria comes to us by way of Charlotte, NC. One of the owners, Paula Seefeldt, grew up in the DC area and says she wanted to bring Fuel “back home” since they first opened. The menu includes Old Bay crab pizza, a gluten-free pizza menu and hot wings. There are currently eight Fuel Pizza locations in Charlotte.

Fuel is located at 1606 K Street NW. Cancel your previous lunch plans and let us know what the line looks like…

Alexandria, Dupont Circle, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed, We Love Food

Pizzeria Paradiso Celebrates 20 Years

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‘Pizzeria Paradiso’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

There’s an old friend in town who’s turning 20 next week: Pizzeria Paradiso.

Back in November 1991, the pizzeria opened its first location in Dupont Circle and over its history has not only revamped the original spot, but expanded to Georgetown and Old Town Alexandria. Not too shabby of an accomplishment for a local small business, right?

“When Pizzeria Paradiso was created, the things motivating it were community, laughter and tasty food,” said chef and owner Ruth Gresser in a news release. “We were all so excited when our first customers entered the restaurant a few minutes after we unlocked the front door. And now, we’re so happy to reach our ’20 Something’ anniversary so we can celebrate by eating and laughing with our family of customers and staff.”

In honor of its 20th birthday, the restaurant is hosting a week of events as part of their “20 Something” Celebration:

  • Monday, November 7th – Get one large and one small pizza for $20 on take-out orders only.
  • Tuesday, November 8th – Receive a 20th anniversary beer glass when you purchase a beer with your meal. The 8th is the restaurant’s official birthday.
  • Wednesday, November 9th – Pay $20 for all you can eat pizza and beer (note: you can eat all the pizza you want, but there’s 2 beer maximum).
  • Thursday, November 10th – Pay $20 for a small special pizza and an anniversary beer.
  • Friday, November 11th – Your first beer is just 20 cents.
  • Saturday, November 12th – Dine in at a location and pay just 20 cents for toppings (note: 3 toppings maximum)
  • Sunday, November 13th – Round out the week with “20 Free Pizzas” Family/Kids Day from 1-4 PM. Kids can be part of a make your own pizza demonstration with owner/chef Ruth Gresser and the first 20 kid’s pizzas are free (note: Old Town location only).

Plus, Pizzeria Paradiso will be hosting a trivia contest on their Facebook pages (GeorgetownOld TownDupont) with $20 gift certificate prizes twice per day. And their lucky 2,000th Twitter follower will receive three $20 gift certificates, one for each location.

Congratulations and happy birthday to Pizzeria Paradiso for serving up tasty slices to DC for 20 years!

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed

FREE FOOD ALERT: Make Your Own Pizza Kit

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‘rakhi and her pizza’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

Cheese is fatty, meat toppings tend to be rich, and the sauce is sweet. Pizza toppings are also packed with a compound called glutamate, which can be found in the tomatoes, cheese, pepperoni and sausage. … But according to culinary scientists, they contain flavor compounds that taste even better when eaten together.

Getchyer pizza! Potomac Pizza’s four locations (listed below) will be giving out a free slice of pizza and soft drink to all customers from 12 PM – 4 PM today. The restaurant is calling it their “final slice of summer.” And to quell your sadness about summer ending, you can go eat your feelings in the form of delicious pizza.

Homemade pizza, even with the cost of electricity factored in, is ridiculously affordable. However, it does take some time to make. Most of it is hands off time, though (oven heating, dough rising), so as long as you’re at home already, it won’t feel like it takes that long. 

It’s probably because you’re making it at home in a home oven. Those top out at 450 or 500 degrees F, which is a refrigerator compared to a pizza oven. You can compensate for that somewhat by getting a pizza stone and letting it preheat in your oven. If you are a fan pizza chef, check this link https://www.dough-re-me.co.uk/ for tips on your pizza dough.

The four locations are at:

  • Chevy Chase Center: 19 Wisconsin Circle, Chevy Chase, MD
  • Potomac Promenade: 9812 Falls Road, Potomac, MD
  • Traville Village Center: 9709 Traville Gateway Dr. Rockville, MD
  • Kentlands Market Square: 625 Center Point Way, Gaithersburg, MD

Note that there’s a limit of one free slice per customer.

Food and Drink, The Features, The Hill, We Love Food

We Love Food: Seventh Hill Pizza

Photo courtesy of
‘Seventh Hill Pizza’
courtesy of ‘kspidel’

Last summer, in a fit of humidity-induced insanity, my friends and I decided to taste test non-delivery pizzas around town. There were seven pies, and in an attempt to branch out a little, I picked up one from Seventh Hill. I figured this Eastern Market spot (which no one had heard of before) would finish somewhere in the middle of the pack with perennial favorite 2 Amy’s coming out on top. In a Cinderella story that ESPN would surely have composed a specific theme song for, Seventh Hill came out of nowhere and clinched the win.

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Food and Drink, The Daily Feed

Haute Pizza at POV

POV Mushroom Pizza
Mushroom pizza at POV
Courtesy of BrandLinkDC/POV

It’s not often that pizza is regarded as a beacon for haute cuisine. But when it’s served under Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s name while you take in a view of DC from POV’s rooftop, you’ll see why their new pizza is a far cry from delivery.

 The W Hotel’s POV recently added three gourmet, individually-sized pizza options to their menu, including a traditional mozzarella, basil and tomato pie, wild mushroom and goat cheese pie and a truffle and fontina pie. The pizza made with black truffle peelings and truffle oil has been available at other Jean-Georges restaurants, in case it sounded familiar to you. And if the new pizzas aren’t enough for you, POV is also adding a creme fraiche cheesecake with kumquat marmalade and a walnut fudge brownie with a salted caramel ice cream.

Sounds like a good option for entertaining those fancy clients who are in town. A little haute pizza and a cocktail should be all they need to unwind after a day of meetings.

Capital Chefs, Food and Drink, The Features

Capital Chefs: Tom Marr of Pete’s Apizza (Part 1)

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‘Chef Tom Marr, Pete’s Apizza’
courtesy of ‘bonappetitfoodie’

Walking into the Pete’s Apizza location in Tenleytown, I approached the counter and asked for Chef Thomas Marr. “Chef who?” said the cashier. Suddenly I was afraid that I had gotten the location wrong. Was I supposed to go to the one in Columbia Heights? Did I get the time wrong? “Uhh, let me go check for you,” he said. No sooner did the jovial chef come out to greet me, the cashier laughed, “Sorry, when you said ‘chef’ I got confused. He’s known as one of the owners around here.”

Photo courtesy of

Wearing multiple hats is exactly what Marr does–he’s a chef, but he’s also one of the co-founders of Pete’s Apizza and is often busy managing the restaurant and talking with familiar customers. “Restaurant people are restaurant people,” he says, adding that once they start working in the restaurant business, they stay. For Marr, he always enjoyed the hospitality aspect and getting satisfaction out of making customers happy. Now, he’s got a restaurant of his own, and even invested in a POS system, e.g., Revel Systems, so he can have better customer transactions. Marr entered the restaurant world as a dishwasher, graduated to doing prep work and eventually trained at the Culinary Institute of America. He’s worked in restaurants across the world, including DC’s own National Gallery of Art.

‘Pizza at Pete’s Apizza’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

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Food and Drink, We Love Food

We Love Food: Comet Ping Pong

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‘Outdoor Ping Pong’
courtesy of ‘M.V. Jantzen’
Over the last couple of years, I’ve eaten in a lot of nice restaurants. And after the foie gras, the caviar, the course-upon-course of decadent food, what have I learned? I’ve learned I love pizza. I really love pizza. I love it in all its forms – artisan Neopolitan right down to the new crust at Dominos. But if I have to pick one incarnation, it’s always going to be the personal pizza with the funky toppings. That leaves me with 2 Amys, 7th Hill, and my personal favorite, Comet Ping Pong.

The first time I tried Comet, I had high hopes for the pizza. The food didn’t disappoint, but I was most impressed with the feeling of the place. It left me a little bummed that I wasn’t, ahem…a few years younger and that I couldn’t turn this restaurant into my high school hang out. My Peach Pit, if you will.

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Food and Drink, The Features, We Love Food

We Love Food: 2 Amys

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‘2 Amy’s’
courtesy of ‘aus_chick’
There are certain unalienable truths for me when it comes to dining out: I don’t like to eat at restaurants with tons of kids, and I hate waiting for a table. 2 Amys is one of the few restaurants that I actually overlook these issues and settle in for a sometimes loud, usually not immediate dinner.

2 Amys is a neighborhood restaurant at its core, though a neighborhood restaurant with a much broader fan base than greater Cleveland Park. The restaurant is small, even with the secret second floor and tiny back patio, and not really made for the tables of four or six that are forced to meander around outside, hoping that a few two-tops will finish at the same time. Continue reading

Farm Fresh, The Features

Farm Fresh: Radius Pizza

Winter Pie

Winter Pie with celery root puree

Here’s another edition of our Farm Fresh feature where WeLoveDC authors Donna (greenie) and Katie (foodie) have paired up to tell you about local area restaurants that take on the challenge of being green. Donna explains the restaurant’s environmentally friendly efforts and Katie tells you if the food tastes any good. It’s a rough life, but someone has to do it, right?

Katie: Radius is one of those neighborhood gems that make you feel like you won the jackpot when you discover it. Tucked away on the second floor of an old row house on Mount Pleasant Street in Columbia Heights/Mount Pleasant, the little pizzeria is one of my very favorite restaurants in the city. Last April, husband and wife team Todd and Nicole Wiss took over the former Italian eatery and turned it into one of the city’s most eco-conscious restaurants.

Donna: Chef Todd and his Nicole met while working at Poste Moderne Brassiere, which also has a commitment to local and sustainable food. It was there, while directing a James Beard Dinner that Todd became passionate about farm-to-table cooking. “Having eaten this way the majority of my life, I found it really important to make it our goal to create awareness to the diner that this is really important for the sustainability of our land, for future farming, and future generations,” said Todd. And then he shared that other reason: “It tastes a hell of a lot better!”
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The Daily Feed

A Deal on Organic Pizza

Photo courtesy of
‘a healthier pie’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

It’s not often you see a big coupon for organic food.

A friend who knows my penchant for pizza, natural nibbles and great deals sent on today’s Groupon–$20 worth of food for $10 from zpizza.

It says zpizza offers “bubbly pizza that’s safe for vegans, vegetarians, the gluten-shy, and snooty gourmands.” Add “greenies” to the list — ’cause you can get organic crust and tomato sauce on your pie.

The deal expires at midnight.

The Daily Feed

New Lost Dog Café Opens in S. Arlington

A New Lost Dog
As a big fan of Lost Dog Café, which has drawn crowds in Westover for years, I was thrilled to see a “now open” sign at its new location this weekend, across from the Arlington Cinema ‘n’ Drafthouse.

Like the original, this one has a menu with scores of specialty pizzas, 50-odd sandwiches, and more beers than I could easily count. My man and I checked it out last night, and to our yummy dinner added a Bad Dog a la Mode brownie sundae to celebrate the opening.

This area of Columbia Pike is being redeveloped, and Lost Dog is one of the first new businesses to open there, in the retail area under the first new condos. So more Lost Dog, less waiting. Oh, happy day!