pizza

Arlington’s Pupatella ranked as one of the world’s best pizza chains

By James Jarvis
Pupatella in South Arlington (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Arlington’s Pupatella has been recognized by an international pizza ranking guide as one of the premier pizza chains worldwide.

The Italy-based guide 50 Top Pizza gave Pupatella and a few dozen other notable pizza chains special mention alongside its “50 Top World Artisan Pizza Chains 2023” list, an annual selection of the best pizzerias in the world.

“Their style, highly appreciated by the public, nods to contemporary Neapolitan-style pizza,” 50 Top Pizza said on its website.

“On the menu, you’ll find pizzas divided between red and white, all traditionally topped with ingredients often of Italian origin,” the website description continued. “The Napoli Street Snack section dedicated to fried items is a must-try.”

Founded by Naples, Italy natives Enzo Algarme and his wife Anastasiya Laufenberg, the pizzeria started as a modest pizza cart near the Ballston Metro station in September 2007.

Almost three years later, the duo opened their first brick-and-mortar location at 5104 Wilson Blvd — which nearly closed at one point — in the Bluemont neighborhood in 2010.

Since its inception, Pupatella has garnered numerous awards and this week, Algarme welcomed the news that Pupatella was mentioned in the guide.

“At Pupatella, we believe in doing things the old-fashioned way, which is why I think we’ve become a staple in our community since opening in 2007,” he said in a statement to ARLnow.

“We also feel it’s important to invest in the community that gave us our start to build long lasting relationships instead of following trends,” he continued. “We try to be the kind of place where people come back to because they grew up going there — and they know the experience they’re going to get when they come to any of our locations.”

The pizza chain has expanded to seven additional locations across the D.C. area, including another in Arlington on S. Walter Reed Drive, and outlets in D.C., Reston, Springfield, the Mosaic District, Leesburg and Richmond, Virginia.

It intends to open four new locations in D.C., Alexandria and Chantilly, Virginia, and Columbia, Maryland, according to its website.

Big Tony’s Pizzeria & Dive Bar opens in Clarendon, replacing Bronx Pizza

By James Jarvis
1/6

Bronx Pizza is back in Clarendon under a new name: Big Tony’s Pizzeria & Dive Bar.

Last May, the pizzeria closed its doors with little warning after doing business for more than a decade.

Some thought it might be a hit job, but co-owner and managing partner Katherine Basile tells ARLnow that the owners, Anthony, Mike and Nick Cordero, wanted to rebrand the restaurant.

“They figured they could probably do something a little bit different and a little bit more upbeat in there, since that space was kind of dead at one point,” she said, calling the new space “Bronx 2.0”

Basile says the Cordero brothers approached her and her business partner Kristina Murphy for business ideas. The duo and the brothers go back more than a decade, having worked together on other local Cordero-owned establishments, including Don Tito and A-Town Bar & Grill.

Basile says she and Murphy envisioned a “trendy” 80s and 90s retro theme for the pizzeria, which the Cordero brothers loved. New York City-based designer Yvette Irene was enlisted to design an eye-catching space.

The revamped pizza place is intended to have “a nice, fun vibe where people could really just be who they wanted to be in there,” Basile said. Another new addition: an upgraded outdoor dining space with all-weather booth seating.

While Big Tony’s retains some menu items from its days as Bronx Pizza, there are new options, including “The Snooki” meatball parmigiana sandwich and a pizza topped with mac and cheese and bacon, as well as a full-service bar with craft cocktails.

The restaurant held a soft opening two weeks ago and plans for a grand opening are in the works.

The grand opening date has not yet been confirmed but Basile said it will feature Anthony Cordero’s 4-year-old daughter Quinn, nicknamed “Big Tony,” who plans to sign autographs in crayon.

Joe’s had its place, but A Modo Mio is the way forward

By Nick Barahona
1/9

“Joe’s is the past, A Modo Mio is now!”

These are the words from Rosario, part owner of what used to be Joe’s Pizza Place, but is now A Modo Mio.

Joe’s made a name for itself and became a community favorite with its pizza, pasta, subs and most memorably, their buffet. Fast forward to 2020, with Covid in full effect, the restaurant changed its name, concept and menu to stay alive.

A Modo Mio was born.

Located at 5555 Langston Boulevard, A Modo Mio stands as a location serving its community authentic Italian cuisine.

“A Modo Mio, it came to be because of Covid. The previous concept wasn’t Covid friendly. With the buffet and salad bar, you just can’t do it,” co-owner Rosario Farruggio said. “[At first] we didn’t know what to do actually. We knew Joe’s wouldn’t be able to survive.”

The answer: a sit-down dining experience that borrows some of the Italian playbook from its restaurant cousin, the well-liked Georgetown eatery il Canale.

“Joe from Joe’s Place has another restaurant in D.C. called il Canele, and because of that restaurant and because of Antonio, one of the head chefs there when il Canele first opened, they were able to partner up and bring that concept here to Arlington. He knew the cuisine and we had the location, we made it happen,” says Rosario.

Born in the Agrigento region of Sicily, Italy, Joe Farruggio is an award winning restaurateur, pizzaiolo, chef and author that has over 53 years of food service experience. He opened the first Joe’s Place in Bailey’s Crossroads in 1978.

Joe, Rosario, and master pizza chef Antonio Biglietto — who’s from Naples, Italy — all came together to bring a piece of home to life here in Arlington, saving the location’s business.

“In August of 2020, we shut Joe’s down, remodeled and reopened in October as A Modo Mio,” says Rosario. The name translates to “my way” in Italian.

“Not inspired by the Sinatra song,” says Rosario. “It was something Joe came up with.”

What was new about this restaurant, other than the name?

“This is real authentic Italian, not like an Olive Garden. One of the main things that showcases that and what the people appreciate and recognize is that we are VPN certified,” says Rosario.

VPN stands for Vera Pizza Napoletana and can be seen within the menu. To that end, a Modo Mio has a custom made, hand built brick oven from Italy.

“To get certified, you have to be authentic,” says Rosario. “You need to have real Italian ingredients imported from Italy, like our flour and tomatoes, and you need real mozzarella cheese, fresh mozzarella.”

The restaurant’s employees are even trained by a certified Neapolitan pizza maker.

“We have the roots so now we can actually teach that art,” says Rosario. The authenticity extends to other parts of the menu, too.

“The pasta that we have, it’s authentic in how we make it. It’s all house made,” Rosario says.

(more…)

ACPD: Armed suspects carjacked delivery driver’s Prius last night

By ARLnow.com
Police speeding to a call at night (staff photo)

A pizza delivery driver was carjacked in the Arlington Mill neighborhood last night.

The incident happened Wednesday night on S. Dickerson Street, a couple of blocks north of the Arlington Mill Community Center and Columbia Pike.

A pair of suspects, at least one of whom was armed with a gun, threatened the delivery driver and stole his 2005 Toyota Prius, according to an Arlington County Police Department crime report. The driver was not hurt.

More from ACPD:

CARJACKING (Late), 2022-10190259, 800 block of S. Dickerson Street. At approximately 11:20 p.m. on October 19, police were dispatched to the late report of an armed robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined the victim was delivering pizza when he was approached by two unknown male suspects. The suspects allegedly threatened the victim with a firearm and demanded his personal belongings and the keys to his vehicle. The suspects then stole the victim’s belongings and fled the scene in the victim’s vehicle. No injuries were reported. Suspect One is described as a Black male, approximately 5’10”, wearing a ski mask and dark clothing. Suspect Two is described as a Black male with a husky build, approximately 5’6″, wearing a ski mask. The vehicle is described as a 2005 White Toyota Prius with Virginia tags TZE7770. The investigation is ongoing.

The last reported carjacking in Arlington happened in July in the Crystal City area, though a few attempted carjackings have been reported since then.

Papa John’s relocated across the Pike, leaving customers confused

By Matt Blitz
Papa John’s Pizza has relocated to S. Glebe Road (staff photo by Matt Blitz)

The relocation of Papa John’s Pizza on Columbia Pike has left hungry customers confused.

Last month, a new Papa John’s location opened just off the Pike at 1014 S. Glebe Road. It moved into the former home of the donut shop Sugar Shack, the closing of which left a proverbial hole in the center of some local residents’ hearts.

The pizza shop essentially relocated from the now-demolished Westmont Shopping Center, which is in the midst of a major redevelopment. The Papa John’s there closed last summer and it took about a year for it to reopen across the street.

However, Papa John’s website still lists the old address — 3233A Columbia Pike — as the location of the shop. That address currently does not exist and is now a construction site.

This has left a number of customers confused about where to go to pick up their pizza, says general manager Alex Reyes. While the phone number is accurate on the website, the address is not and Reyes says he gets lots of calls from customers baffled about where to find their food.

What’s more, he says business has been unusually slow at times, likely a result of potential customers thinking that it’s closed.

Reyes has contacted Papa John’s corporate asking them to update the website with the correct address and has been told they are working on the problem.

ARLnow has reached out to Papa John’s as well but has yet to hear back as of publication.

With a couple of shopping centers on Columbia Pike undergoing redevelopment, a number of businesses have closed recently, including Atilla’s Restaurant, which had been on the Pike for nearly five decades, H&R Block, and Mom’s Pizza. Atilla’s, like Papa John’s, is on the hunt for a new space, we previously reported.

Pizza and beer hall finally planning to start serving tomorrow in Ballston

By Matt Blitz
1/3

Expansive pizzeria-slash-beer hall Quincy Hall is finally set to start serving slices and pints tomorrow (Friday) in Ballston.

First announced nearly three years ago, the “American Pizza Beer Hall” at 4001 Fairfax Drive is planning a soft opening for this weekend. There will be a more formal grand opening, with specials and festivities, set for late next week, a restaurant spokesperson tells ARLnow.

Quincy Hall will feature pizza from “world pizza guru, Giulio Adriani” and “rare beers from local breweries.” The 8,000-square-foot space at the corner of Fairfax Drive and N. Quincy Street has a 245-person capacity indoors and an extra 80-person, dog-friendly patio outside. Wall art comes from D.C.-based artist Kelly Towles.

“We wanted to create the perfect gathering space in the Ballston neighborhood, a spot where fun meets delicious. The pizza’s are unmatched and we’ve selected unique local beers to pair perfectly,” co-owner Peter Bayne writes to ARLnow. “Three years later… we are excited to have this place open and be the neighborhood hangout.”

Quincy Hall comes from Tin Shop, the same ownership group that runs Highline RxR in Crystal City and is opening Astro Beer Hall in Shirlington. The Shirlington spot is set to open in the fall, a spokesperson tells to ARLnow.

Tin Shop also operates several well-known D.C. bars including Franklin Hall, Penn Social, and Church Hall in Georgetown, which just announced it was closing.

The pizza is the star of Quincy Hall’s show, according to the press release. Adriani is from Rome and was taught how to make pizza by his grandmother. He worked “under pizza-masters throughout Italy,” opened restaurants across the globe, and has won four world pizza championships, the release notes.

“Adriani’s passion is dough and constantly seeking illusive crust perfection,” it reads. “He created a challenging three-day fermented dough for Quincy Hall which Adriani insists is his ‘best ever!'”

Also on the menu, there will be smashburgers, wings, truffle fries, tenders, garlic bites, and caesar salad.

In what might be a sign of a popular emerging genre of restaurant, this is the second pizza and beer hall to open in Arlington over the last month. Nighthawk Pizza started serving in Pentagon City in March.

NEW: Nighthawk Pizza opening Thursday in Pentagon City

By ARLnow.com
1/10

(Updated at 12:20 p.m.) The former Champps space at Pentagon Row is back in business as a beer-and-pizza spot.

Nighthawk Pizza will open to the public on Thursday (March 24) at 3 p.m., in the large space at 1201 S. Joyce Street, after a series of private “friends and family” nights this week.

The concept marries a 90s vibe with a pizza-centric menu and an on-site brewery operated by Aslin Beer Company. It’s helmed by Chef Johnny Spero, of Netflix’s Final Table fame plus other culinary cred, and backed by a group that includes local serial entrepreneur Scott Parker. (The group also recently opened Poppyseed Rye in Ballston.)

In addition to thin-crust pizza and beer, the menu includes a range of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, burgers, and cocktails — both handmade and on tap. The red-and-blue neon lights, bench seating and retro arcade games help to give the restaurant its 90s feel, partially offset by the abundant flat screen TVs that surround the large bar and the cavernous dining area.

“The design inspiration for the space was The Max from ‘Saved By The Bell,'” Parker noted.

In all, the brew pub has 10,000 square feet of space, plenty for the crowds Parker and company are hoping to attract from the growing neighborhood, which includes Amazon’s HQ2, set for a 2023 opening a few blocks away.

Parker said his group of partners “is already looking for our next locations for Nighthawk, as well as developing other projects.” Additional locations in the D.C. area and other cities are expected to be announced “in the coming months,” he said.

Meanwhile, Nighthawk is not the only spring opening at Pentagon Row, which was renamed “Westpost” in 2020.

“Taco temple” Banditos Bar & Kitchen is set to open in April, one restaurant over and also overlooking Westpost’s central square and soon-to-be-dismantled-for-the-season ice skating rink. Also expected to open next month are a new, 34,000 square foot Target store, on April 3, as well as sushi restaurant Kusshi.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Soccer practice at Long Bridge Park (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

New Organ Debuts Tomorrow — “The new organ [at St. George’s Episcopal Church in Virginia Square] cost $1.2 million… Opus 28 arrived in Arlington on Oct. 3, 2021. For three weeks, Pasi put together the 500,000 parts that constitute it. He spent the next two months ‘voicing’ the organ: doing the painstaking adjustments necessary to make everything sound just right.” [Washington Post]

Reminder: Pizza Boxes Can Be Composted — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services: “There’s No ‘I’ in Food Scraps: Arlington viewers of ‘The Big Game’ can give 110% and go all in in the green curbside cart: pizza crusts and boxes, wing bones and greasy napkins. You won’t be denied.” [Twitter]

County Helping With Museum Renovations — “As efforts begin to renovate its museum, the Arlington Historical Society is working to embrace close collaboration where possible with the Arlington County government. Whether that will turn into a financial partnership remains to be seen, but county staff will be providing their knowledge to help the renovation move ahead.” [Sun Gazette]

Public Defender Pay Bill Fails — “A measure to equalize pay between staff of Virginia prosecutors and those working in public-defender’s offices died in a House of Delegates subcommittee. The measure, patroned by Del. Alfsono Lopez (D-Arlington-Fairfax), would have required localities that supplement the compensation of staff in its office of commonwealth’s attorney beyond state minimums to do the same for staff of a public defender’s office, if a locality has one.” [Sun Gazette]

Nearby: Scammers Impersonating Police — “Officers have received reports from community members who stated that callers contact them claiming to be members of a police department or sheriff’s department. The law enforcement impersonator may… tell the community member they missed a court appearance or jury duty [and] state they need to send money or a warrant will be issued for their arrest or they may turn themselves in to jail.” [City of Falls Church]

Snow Possible This Weekend — “Light to moderate snow could fall in the D.C. area on Super Bowl Sunday. But it’s still not clear whether it will snow hard enough or be cold enough for it to amount to much and have serious effects on the region.” [Capital Weather Gang]

It’s Thursday — Sunny, with a high near 55 today, and wind gusts as high as 21 mph. Sunrise at 7:04 a.m. and sunset at 5:40 p.m. Sunny again tomorrow, with a high near 57 and wind gusts as high as 22 mph. [Weather.gov]

Nighthawk Pizza in Pentagon City hopes for late March opening

By Matt Blitz
1/6

Nighthawk Pizza, the beer and food hall with a “’90s vibe,” is aiming for a late March opening in Pentagon City, co-owner Scott Parker tells ARLnow.

The newest venture from the local serial entrepreneur was initially expected to start serving  in the late fall, but supply chain hang-ups (a common refrain these days) pushed the date a few months.

The restaurant is a much-anticipated addition to Westpost, the retail and dining center formerly known as Pentagon Row, filling the large former Champps space.

The head chef is Johnny Spero, breakout star of Netflix’s Final Table and one of the buzziest chefs in the D.C. region right now. The menu will feature thicker-crust Sicilian pizzas and a crisper, thinner tavern-style pizza as well as sandwiches, smoked wings, fried cheese curds, ribs and ice cream sundaes.

The beer will be from Northern Virginia-based Aslin Beer Company, which will brew “approachable low ABV beers, that will be reminiscent of old-world styles for the working class.”

The 10,000 square foot beer and pizza eatery is leaning hard into the ’90s vibe with the design inspired by the after-school hot spot “the Max” on the television show “Saved by the Bell.”

“The whole space is not going to be as bright or as loud, but when we were looking for design touches, that was the inspiration,” Parker says. The interior is currently under construction, so photos are not available quite yet to compare Nighthawk to Zack Morris’s favorite place to hang out.

There will also be an outdoor bar, which pairs nicely with Westpost now permitting “sipping and strolling.” Meaning, patrons can roam the shopping plaza with a drink in hand.

Nighthawk Pizza is the latest from Parker, well known in Arlington not just for his restaurants but barbershops, boxing gyms and doggy daycares.

He says one of the reasons he chose to open his newest creation at Westpost was because of the abundance of buzzy openings in recent months, including Lucky Danger, Mattie and Eddie’s, and soon-to-open Banditos Bar & Kitchen. Amazon’s arrival in the neighborhood is driving these restaurants to set up shop in Pentagon City, says Parker.

As to why Arlington is constantly the setting for Parker’s new businesses, he says it’s because of the clientele.

“There are so many people who are doing well professionally right out of college,” he says. “It’s just a great demographic with a lot of people who have disposable income. For the business I’m part of, that just fits well.”

Halal pizza shop plans to open next month on Columbia Pike

By Matt Blitz
Future location of Papa Deeno’s Pizza on Columbia Pike (via Google Maps)

A new family-owned, halal pizza shop is looking to open next month on Columbia Pike.

Papa Deeno’s Pizza at 4109 Columbia Pike was initially supposed to open at the end of last year, but a family health emergency and supply chain challenges has pushed the opening by a few months.

The plan is now to open mid to late February, says co-owner Roxanne Mannan.

Mannan is opening the restaurant with her husband, Sapon Rahman, who’s been in the pizza business for more than 15 years. Owning their own pizza place is a fulfillment of a family goal.

“My daughter always wanted to have a pizza restaurant,” Mannan says. “She tells me ‘Mommy, my dream is to own a pizza shop.'”

So much so, that the 8-year-old designed the business’s logo, a slice dripping with cheese.

Papa Deeno’s Pizza from their website (Photo via screenshot)

What also makes the shop unique is that it will be all halal, similar to the taco shop La Tingeria in Falls Church.

“We are Muslim and eating out can be a challenge,” Mannan explains. “We thought it would be good to have some place that’s purely halal so people could have [that] choice.”

While the family doesn’t currently live in Arlington, Mannan attended Wakefield High School and grew up in the county. In fact, on Columbia Pike and in Quebec Apartments which is almost exactly across the street from where Papa Deeno’s will be.

“It really is a dream to find a place where I have a lot of memories,” she says.

Papa Deeno’s is expecting to do a brisk delivery business, with about 225 pizza deliveries over a course of a week, according to an October Arlington County staff report. That would potentially account for 30% to 40% of the business’s sales.

The menu consists of typical fare – pizzas, salads, pastas, sandwiches and chicken wings. The website also lists a second location in Chantilly that’s coming soon.

It’s moving into a space formerly occupied by Columbia Pike Cleaners.

Mannan notes that they understand it is a bit risky opening a restaurant during a pandemic, but believes this is the right time for her and her family.

She says, “When [customers] taste our product, I hope they can tell…the quality we can give to the community.”

Bitcoin Pizza now serving ‘Laser Eyes’ pies and cryptocurrency education in Courthouse

By Matt Blitz
1/2

The self-proclaimed “world’s first decentralized pizzeria” is now serving up pies in Courthouse

Bitcoin Pizza, a “virtual restaurant,” opened on Oct. 31 and operates out of the kitchen of Fire Works Pizza at 2350 Clarendon Blvd. It is one of about 100 locations across the country and one of seven locations in the D.C.-area.

The pizzeria was created by branding company Popchew in partnership with Bitcoin influencer Anthony Pompliano.

And, yes, the restaurant accepts Bitcoin as well as U.S. dollars.

“We want to spread the word of Bitcoin through this pizza,” Popchew CEO Rushir Parikh tells ARLnow. “[Pizza] is a very approachable way to learn about Bitcoin. We want to make Bitcoin as widely known and available as pizza is.”

It’s about educating the public on cryptocurrency and making it less scary — all while serving up great food — he says.

Bitcoin Pizza is essentially a ghost kitchen, with the company doing the branding and marketing, a local restaurant (in this case, Fire Works) making the pizza, and a third-party (UberEats, DoorDash, etc.) delivering. Like many ghost kitchens, ordering is online-only.

About 20% of the generated revenue goes to Bitcoin Pizza, Parikh said.

There was no specific reason that Arlington or Courthouse was chosen as a location, beyond wanting to have a number of locations in and near major cities, he notes.

The idea for a pizzeria was inspired by the famous — in the crypto world, at least — story of how a Florida man in 2010 purchased two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins. Eleven years ago, that equated to about $40 US dollars. Today, 10,000 bitcoins are worth more than $500 million.

October 31, the day of Bitcoin Pizza’s Arlington launch (along with the launch of a number of other locations) is also an important day in the cryptocurrency’s history. On Halloween 2008, Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto released the Bitcoin white paper which explained its rules, workings, and structure.

The menu includes pizzas with cryptocurrency-themed names, like Capital Greens (veggie), Satoshi’s Favorite (Hawaiian) and Laser Eyes (pepperoni).

On its website, the company behind Bitcoin Pizza, calls itself “the coolest food court on the internet.” Parikh compares the aspirations of Popchew to Yum! Brands, which owns fast food staples Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC.

“What we want to do is work with influential brands and people to build the next generation of food brands,” he says.

Working with local restaurants, like Fire Works Pizza, allows the company and its ideas to scale up quickly.

And Popchew is already working on its next food brand. “Wingszn” has launched and is expected to open a location in Arlington in the next month or two, Parikh says.

That “virtual restaurant” will be serving up chicken wings and yes, you can pay with Bitcoin.

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