Pizza at Mamma Lucia’s, Chevy Chase, Washington, DC

I’ve praised the extraordinarily well-run Mamma Lucia’s at 5504 Connecticut Avenue before, see here, and have been there often. Still, I’d never tried their pizza, even though Pizza Maven Dan Ebeling of the Morning Starbucks Group recommends it highly. Nancy rarely eats pizza, and if I’m the only one eating pizza, I lean toward small specialty pizzas-for-one, like the ones at Comet, 2 Amys, and Pizzeria Paradiso. They’re more expensive, but have the virtue of being small — right for one person. Mamma Lucia’s are more standard pizza place pies, made for a family of four. I suppose I could save a good bit of money by buying a large from Mamma’s and saving the leftovers, but then I’ve often been mistaken for a family of four. At best, I’d eat twice as much pizza, and much as I enjoyed leftover pizza in my college days, it just doesn’t taste the same unless you have to pick off a few pop tops and cigarette butts.

I recently had an opportunity to have Mamma Lucia’s pizza when Michael ordered several for a very informal supper with our friends Scott, Julie, and AJ on Easter. We’d had a more formal family Easter dinner after church, so this was just a relaxed get-together. Michael ordered three pizzas from Mamma Lucia’s for the crowd — a cheese pizza,

a sausage, pepperoni, and green pepper,

and Jimmy’s White Pizza.

Each of the pizzas was a hit. As you can see, they were New York style pizzas, which as far as I can tell merely means they have a pliable crust that can be folded in half. More important, each pizza was well balanced and well made.

First the cheese pizza. The sauce was well seasoned with nice touches of sweetness and oregano. I don’t get plain pizza often, but if they were all this good, I’d get them more often. Too often pizzas are overloaded with excess sauce or, more often, far too much cheese. Sometimes it’s both. Then the pizza becomes more of of a project than a pleasure. This was just right, all elements in balance.

The pepperoni, sausage, and peppers pizza was another winner, with good ingredients spread abundantly and evenly (without being obsessive). It was cooked, like the cheese pizza, just until done. It was very good.

I recognize that many people prefer a heavily charred pizza, and feel strongly about the issue. Some char is all but inevitable, and fine with me. I certainly appreciate the additional flavor that the nonenzymatic browning reaction — the Maillard effect or caramelization — has on the flavor and the aroma of food as well as its color. Indeed, a little more browning of these would not have been amiss. The char I see on many pizzas, however. is just carbon, which is quite a different thing. I’m not a fan of burnt toast. Others are, and I recognize their tastes without sharing them. It’s a free country, and I have no desire to dictate pizza standards.

That leaves the white pizza, dressed with fontina, garlic, and olive oil. Wow! This was delicious, rich with just the right amount of cheese and a bold touch of garlic. And the crust was a fine platform. Indeed, the crust of each pizza itself was well worth eating, with a good bread flavor and texture. I don’t want to exaggerate the quality, or compare this to some of the “craft” or “elite” pizzas, but his is a place you really have to try. Pizza is yet another area in which our local Mamma Lucia’s outperforms. If you haven’t been, go, and work your way around the menu.

***

And while you’re at it, click “follow” on our front page to receive blog posts in your email box. Or bookmark us and check in from time to time. We’re on Instagram (johntannerbbq) and Twitter (johntannerbbq1) pages, and if you’re planning a trip, you can “Search” the name of the destination city, state, or country for good restaurants (in Europe, often close to sites, like the Louvre, Prague Castle, Vienna’s Old City, or the Van Gogh Museum, that you’ll want to visit in any event.  We welcome comments and questions, and eagerly seek suggestions of places to eat and stories to cover.