H &pizza

1118 H Street NE
Washington, DC 20002
202.733.1285
www.andpizza.com


I had gone to Toki Underground last weekend and I was going to write...um...blog (let's be honest, this barely qualifies as writing) about it but I had ordered a special instead of trying out their classic ramen.  I tried to figure out ways to justify a post about Toki without having their most basic thing and my justification was just to go back and eat there again.  So, I went back this past weekend and got there a little later then last week and the wait was 30-40 minutes.  I would've waited but I was starving so I decided to try the new pizza place down the street, H &pizza.

This is conscientious blogger persona that felt like I needed to try another pizza with their traditional dough in order to write a more comprehensive post.  This is also my WTFamigoingtodofordinner self who thought that pizza doesn't sound too bad two nights in a row.  This is also my persona that likes to write in the third person which needs to stop now.  So, yeah.  I went back the next night to grab me some more pizza and I thought I'd do a blog post in a blog post.

As you walk up, the first thing you notice is that it's a pretty narrow space but its also pretty f*cking simplistically cool.  There's just a row of communal picnic tables running all the way up to counter with a nice white and red paint job emphasizing all things ampersand.  They're overarching theme is that everything goes with pizza.  So, you, me, love, trees, platypuses, and kittens are all one with pizza.  Hence, the &pizza.  It's simple but it does make for some catchy pizza boxes and a cool, modern atmosphere.  Yeah, that's right, paint a room white, put in some picnic tables and decorate with really stylish red & black graphics emphasizing an ampersand and you have me hooked.  What can I say, when simple is done right, it's fantastic.

Yes, I was lazy and didn't want to incorporate both posts together.  Sue me.

The line wasn't too bad when I got there except I got stuck behind theguywithamillionquestionsguy so that slowed up the process of ordering and receiving your order.  The staff was incredibly patient with the guy and were incredibly friendly all-around.  The gist of the process is that you line up, you order, you watch them make your pizza right in front of you, and by the time you get to the place you pick up, your pizza should be ready.  It's pretty efficient and if there isn't a line and your pizza doesn't get there at the same time as you, it'll be brought to your table.

The line was a little longer tonight when I got there, all the tables were packed, and the line was out the door by the time I was leaving.  Gosh, this place is really taking off.  

They've only be open for about a week (and I must say handled the eventual huge crowd admirably) so were running low on some ingredients like their traditional dough.  I had to settle for their multi-grain dough which, as you see later, was less settling and more of a new doughy goodness option for me.  They had options for a choose-your-own toppings pizza and their own creations  I decided to go with one of theirs and I ordered the Maverick with extra mushrooms.  The Maverick is your standard bonanza of meat pizza.  Also, I decided to try their dessert pizza which you'll see as you keep reading.

The Maverick ("You're ego is writing checks you're body can't cash") comes with their classic tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, hot sausage, smoked bacon, soppressata, parmesan reggiano, and oregano oil ("because I was inverted") which is all put on their multi-grain dough.  To me, the multi-grain dough had a slight nutty taste compared with normal pizza dough and felt a bit more dense.  The pizza was thin but wasn't quite neapolitan as it wasn't quite crisp on the bottom.  I didn't detect too much heat from the jumble of meats on the pizza but I liked the blend of sweetness, crunch and heartiness ("Tower, this is ghost rider requesting a fly by").  I thought I would just eat half and take the rest home until half became all and I was just left with an empty box ("Negative Ghost Rider, the pattern is full").

Tonight I ordered the Farmer's Daughter.  There's probably a boatload of movie quotes associated with that (comments below please!) but none of them involve Tom Cruise.  [INSERT RIM SHOT].  Yes folks,I'm here all week and twice on Sundays.  Tip your bartenders.  Amazingly enough, the Farmer's Daughter comes with (takes deep breath) their spicy tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, hot sausage, farm eggs broken open, spinach, parmesan reggiano, red pepper chili oil, and extra mushrooms for me.  All this on their traditional dough.  The traditional dough has more fluff and a more dry flavor to me but equally as appetizing as the multi-grain.  The pizza, overall, had a lot more of a spicy kick than the Maverick and was surprisingly cohesive.  I like how the egg bound everything together (though there was some run in the whites still so one egg barely fully cooked) and the gooey yolky richness is always welcome.  The spinach is lost a little but I like the idea of seeing green on my pizza to at least make me feel better about eating something healthy.

But hey, I had a back up plan.  I had also ordered the dessert pizza so that I could eat it at home while watching the saved programs on my too full DVR.  What is a dessert pizza?  Well, it's the same multi-grain crust with nutella, ricotta, strawberries, powdered sugar, and pecans.  Wait.  What?  That was ricotta not whipped cream?  Remember the scene in Notting Hill where Hugh Grant's roommate thinks he's eating yogurt but it's actually mayonnaise?  (Just go with it) Well, that's what I felt like when I bit into the ricotta, I thought it was something but it actually was this other thing though much better than yogurt to mayonnaise.  The combination together looks fantastic and really promising and I'm not sure if it was because I waited the 20 minutes to drive home before eating it but it turned out to be a bit too soggy and sweet.  It wasn't terrible but I think it needs some work.

This is where we bring it home....

I don't know DC as much as I should but it seems to me that the H street corridor is going through a transformation (so yeah, not a news flash).  From Boundary Road to Toki Underground (which will have to wait until this Sunday as I'm going on a road trip to NC) to the latest addition:  H &pizza.  (Apologies to anyone I missed).  H &pizza not only brings a really hip vibe that's appropriate to the area but also a really hip, creative and flavorful type of pizza.  The toppings are fresh, the dough is well-made and the combinations are well thought out.  It's the type of place that I really enjoy since they do bring something somewhat different to the table and if the early crowds are any indication, they'll be bringing it for quite a long time.