I freely confess that I love pizza - so what better way to embrace Bethesda MD than to try all the pizza restaurants that are available. I think I already have my favorite pizza joint, but I am prepared to be an adult about this and keep an open mind - In the meantime - I am going to try a new pizza restaurant each week and revisit the ones I really like. I am sure this sounds like a significantly difficult task, but someone has to do it - and I believe I am up to the challenge!
This week took me to &Pizza at 7614 Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda, MD. Time was short on Friday night so I tried to call ahead to order dinner. I got lots of options on the recorded phone message - I could speak to customer service if I pushed one number or accounting if I pushed another. Finally at the end the cheery voice said - if you want pizza, just come on over. Sigh.... I wanted to order my dinner ahead, run in and pick it up, and keep going. Clearly &Pizza and I were not on the same wavelength!
With some curiosity, I arrived at the restaurant. It is located just two blocks from the Bethesda metro and there are several parking lots nearby. Since I was pressed for time, I was relieved to find a parking space right in front of the restaurant. There are several tables outside for patrons to eat their pizza right there, and these were filled. That was definitely a good sign.
Inside the restaurant there are a few stools and tables for dining, but this really seems to be geared to grab and go. You get to choose your pizza dough - white flour or whole wheat and then your sauce base and toppings. Your base is created right in front of you as the server runs your blob of dough through a pasta type press and turns your dough into an elegant oval of pizza dough. Next you choose your sauce from about 6 choices, including traditional, spicy and garlicky mushroom. Next you can choose from an unlimited number of toppings - Your pizza creation is popped into an oven and reappears in about 3 to 4 minutes - perfectly done - After that you can add more cheese, olives, salad toppings or peppers, and additional sauces.
I got a make it yourself pizza for my husband with sausage and bacon. That seemed to be better than my pre-created pizza called Moonstruck - it was filled with mushrooms which was great but the fig sauce and chili pepper sauce combined with the goat cheese and garlicky mushroom sauce were too much goop to make for good eating. Sometimes my curiosity about different food combinations works against me!
My daughter has a friend who loves &Pizza because of the unlimited toppings and I can see why.
I would certainly go back to &Pizza - there is a dessert pizza that has my name on it and I want to try a simple pizza with salad on top.
If you live in downtown Bethesda, this is definitely a place to check out. If you don't live in downtown Bethesda, but wish you did, then you should check out my website, www.bethesdahomesforsale, to find your new home! There are great buildings like the Adagio or Lionsgate as well as neighborhoods galore like Kenwood Forest that will let you walk to Bethesda's best restaurants and shops.
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