Food

Great New Restaurants 2010: We, the Pizza

25 places that are making the Washington dining scene better than ever

Former Top Chef bad boy Spike Mendelsohn and Mike Colletti are doing for pizza what they did for burgers next door at their popular Good Stuff Eatery, where creative renditions—say, a bánh mì burger—are mixed in with lettuce-and-tomato classics. The pies and slices of pizza are grounded by an excellent, crisp-bottomed crust, which stands up to a luxuriant blend of béchamel, artichokes, and provolone as well as to a simple scattering of pepperoni. Instead of the milkshakes he’s lauded for, Mendelsohn is turning out delicious fountain sodas flavored with fresh fruits, along with gelato sundaes. Which means the place has something else in common with Good Stuff: long lines.

Don’t miss: Pizza with sausage and peppers; tomatoless Buffalo-chicken pizza drizzled with hot sauce; pineapple soda.

Ann Limpert
Executive Food Editor/Critic

Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.