Pizzeria Paradiso

Specialties

We opened Pizzeria Paradiso so we could make the kind of pizza we longed for but couldn’t find in the DC area; the kind of pizza where the crust was the most important part.

So we started with a wood-​burning, domed, stone oven able to cook at a temperature of 650 degrees. We also wanted our guests to feel like they were being treated to the warmth and comfort of a close friend’s home, so we placed the oven at the heart of the restaurant.

Next, we developed a dough that would respond to our oven the way we dreamed. We let our dough rise slowly, work it by hand, lightly grace it with the finest quality toppings, finish it with extra virgin olive oil and cook it in our beloved oven.

As Phyllis Richman wrote about us, «making great pizza isn’t all that difficult. … All it takes is a commitment to quality. That’s what makes the difference at Pizzeria Paradiso.»

History

Established in 1991.

The original Pizzeria Paradiso, located on the second floor of a small townhouse in Dupont Circle, opened its doors in November 1991 to immediate critical acclaim and has since been consistently ranked among the finest restaurants in Washington, DC. A second location, in historic Georgetown, opened in December 2002. In September 2009 the original location moved to a larger space just a few doors east on P Street. A third location was opened in 2010 in the heart of Old Town Alexandria.

Pizzeria Paradiso provides table service to 85 customers in Dupont Circle, 120 in Georgetown and 100 in Old Town. The menus are supplemented by beer and wine lists and a full bar at both DC locations. Georgetown has a lower level beer bar that serves as a private dining room for special events.

All locations are open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner, with continuous service through the afternoon and into the late-​night dining hours. The entire food menu is available for carryout from each location.

Meet the Business Owner

Ruth G.

Business Owner

Owner/​Chef Ruth Gresser learned her craft at her mother’s side, cooking for her large family & her mother’s catering company. Ms. Gresser cooked her way through college before entering the professional food scene in San Francisco at the early stages of the modern American food movement. In 1987, after graduating summa cum laude from Madeleine Kamman’s Classical & Modern French Cooking School, & cooking professionally in French, American & Italian restaurants across the country, she moved to Washington, DC.

In 1991, she turned her attention to pizza opening Pizzeria Paradiso to critical acclaim. Now considered the matriarch of pizza in DC, Ms. Gresser has been instrumental in opening five popular Washington restaurants. Ms. Gresser is also the author of «Kitchen Workshop — Pizza» to be released in February 2014.

Gresser sits on the Board of Directors of Women Chefs and Restaurateurs, is a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier, and has been profiled in several prominent local papers.

Pizzeria Paradiso also recommends

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Ruth G. says,

«Highly recommend Hank’s for good food, drinks and service.»