Pizzeria Orso
Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 08:21AM Two Amys has long been our undisputed king of DC pizza. While the District has had a influx of challengers spanning a variety of pizza styles, the restaurant's supremacy has never been placed in serious jeopardy, at least in our opinion. Rather than try to top the list with yet another new style of pizza, Pizzeria Orso has seemingly adopted the old adage, 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em' as their motto. With Neapolitan pizzas that are comparable to 2 Amys in nearly every single way, Orso has formed a bizzarro version of the pizzeria and dropped it in the Virginia suburbs. The likeness isn't entirely surprising - Orso's primary pie-maker Edan MacQuaid has worked in just about every notable pizza kitchen in the city (2 Amys, Red Rocks and Pizzeria Paridiso).
The interior of Orso, located in Falls Church, provides a cheerful atmosphere - high ceilings and sunny reds and yellows. With the restaurant's cavernous size, gone are the hour-long waits you'd expect at some of the city's top pizza shops (2 Amys and Pizzeria Paradiso, we're looking at you). On our visit around noon on a recent Saturday, the restaurant had maybe half a dozen tables taken.
The salad and appetizer options are plentiful and impressive. We ordered the Arrosticini (below) - lightly cured lamb, skewered and grilled, and served with bruschetta and lemon slices. The lamb was incredibly flavorful and juicy, and perfect with a little squeeze of lemon.
We also ordered the Suppli al Telefono (below), which are fried risotto balls (very similar to arancini, but smaller) stuffed with buffalo mozzarella. The little bites were really rich and well- (bordering on heavily) seasoned.
Angela went for the Crudo (below) pizza. with tomato, mozzarella, basil, arugula, shaved grana (a hard mature Italian cheese), and prosciutto. Cooked in a special oven for only ninety seconds, the crust comes out charred and crispy on the outside, leaving the inside perfectly soft and chewy. As stated, the paper thin crusts are extremely reminiscent of 2 Amys' tasty bases. That's not to say the pizzas are an exact carbon copy, since MacQuaid uses a hint of sourdough to make his crust, giving them a boost of extra flavor.
I sprung for the Giamette (below), topped with tomato, provola (smoked buffalo mozzarella), pepperoni, sausage, salami, and ham. This meat lover's delight was dressed with a fine garment of ingredients that any crust would have been proud to wear. The quality of the ingredients left little room for any complaints.
So, does Pizzeria Orso trump DC's reigning champs? The pizzas are so similar, it's hard to say - maybe not. But it is dusting off a little extra space on the podium.
Pizza, Virginia in Reviews: On The Town
Reader Comments (4)
We had a very long wait at Orso on a recent Friday night. At least 45 mins, and we even got to watch a kid come out with his family and puke all over the piazza. Gross! I doubt it was from the food, though. I thought it was very good, but I'm unlikely to return soon because it didn't knock my socks off and I live waaaay closer to 2 Amys. The ambiance just didn't do it for me, either.
WHOA. First of all, I can't believe it was a 45 minute wait, that place is HUGE! That's too bad. Second, yuck. Third, yeah, we went because we were in the area anyway. 2 Amys is a haul for us, too, though.
Thanks for the good review. I'll be in the area next week and I'll have to stop by to check out Orsos...maybe I'll have better luck than another commentor...
Jessica-
Glad to be of service. Apparently, it's NOT the place to be on a Friday night. That being said, if you like Neapolitan style pizza, Orso is as good as any I've had. Let us know what you think!