Alexandria will be home to a different kind of pizzeria when Lena’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Tap debuts near the Braddock Road Metro in October. The 100-seat restaurant will mix traditional elements like Neapolitan-style pizzas from a wood-burning oven, while also serving more unusual finds such as Korean barbecue pies topped with short ribs and pickled peppers.
The Rosemont area eatery comes from owner Jason Yates and Alexandria Restaurant Partners David Clapp and Dave Nicholas (Virtue Feed & Grain, The Majestic). The team tapped Italian-born chef Mauro Molino, most recently of Lia’s, to helm the kitchen. In addition to the menu of pizzas, guests will find pasta dishes such as skillet-baked ziti, and a giant meatball roasted in marinara sauce. Service is planned for lunch, dinner, and eventually Sunday brunch.
Though October doesn’t always provide ideal patio weather, a 68-seat garden plaza will be outfitted with a fire pit to extend the al fresco dining season. Stay tuned for more details closer to the opening.
Lena’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Tap. 401 E. Braddock Rd., Alexandria.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
