The renowned Pizzeria Paradiso, Chef Ruth Gresser’s popular four-store concept in Washington, D.C., will make a triumphant return to Alexandria, Virginia’s Old Town next month.
Pizzeria Paradiso operated for 10 years in Old Town before shutting down in the pandemic. For its comeback, the brand will pop up every Thursday through Sunday at Hank’s Oyster Bar, offering pickup and delivery only.
Kicking off the partnership on International Women’s Day—Saturday, March 8—Gresser and Leeds will give away free pizzas topped with mozz and tomatoes to the first 100 customers between noon and 2 p.m.
It’s a collaboration between good friends Gresser and Hank’s Oyster Bar Chef Jamie Leeds. “We’ve talked about it so much over the years, and now we finally find ourselves in a place where can do it,” Leeds told Northern Virginia. “I’m very excited about the possibilities.”
“If it seems like the community really wants to support this idea, we’ll keep it going,” Gresser said. “We’re going to do this for a couple of months and see how the community responds. I think anything is possible.”
Gresser and Leeds rank among the area’s top female restaurateurs, and the new collab comes just in time for Women’s Pizza Month in March. To celebrate, they’ve developed a specialty white-sauce pie topped with shrimp, scallops, lobster, bacon and roasted potatoes.
“We thought that coming to Hank’s Oyster Bar without making a nod towards seafood would be silly and a mistake,” Gresser told Northern Virginia. “So we worked together to make this [pizza]. It’s delicious.”
Gresser pretty much introduced Washington D.C. to Neapolitan-style pizza when she opened the first Pizzeria Paradiso location there in 1991. She runs a progressive brand and no longer officially participates in the tip system. Instead, Gresser’s stores tack on a 14% to-go service fee for online orders to cover staff wages and benefits. However, tips are still accepted.
Pizzas on the Pizzeria Paradiso menu include the Atomica (red sauce, salami, kalamata olives, hot pepper flakes and mozzarella); the Bottarga (red sauce, minced garlic, Grana Padano, egg, bottarga and parsley); and the Paesana (spicy garlic pesto, chicken sausage, sweet red peppers, roasted escarole, broccoli rabe, mozzarella and ricotta).
