Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

90 Second Pizza Is Worth the Wait

90+Second+Pizza
90 Second Pizza

★★★★★

Nestled between two shops on Wisconsin Avenue, about a 10-minute walk from Georgetown’s front gates, is 90 Second Pizza, a pizza joint that opened in August 2018. The white townhouse with fire engine-red trim immediately draws guests in; the front window displays various fresh ingredients like bags of imported flour and wooden pizza boards.

The menu is simple and to the point, just like the ingredients. Guests can choose from 12 pizza styles, which range from meat lovers to Pascalina, the restaurant’s vegan option, or opt to create their own. Beside the register is a fridge with Italian-style beverages such as grapefruit-flavored San Pellegrino and Coca-Cola in small glass bottles.

The simplicity of the menu makes it easy to sample 90 Second Pizza’s offerings. The Vegetariana Rosa pizza features the restaurant’s special San Marzano tomato sauce and is topped with mozzarella, bell peppers, eggplant and zucchini. Its margherita pizza has the same cheese and sauce but is topped only with basil. San Pellegrino sparkling water in its signature emerald green bottles rounds out the meal. The pricing is incredibly reasonable: Each pizza costs $9.99 with the option to add any drink for $1.99 — perfectly priced for a casual meal out with friends.

The food preparation is a transparent process. The chef carefully pulls the fresh dough into the desired shape, spreads the red sauce and sprinkles

ingredients on top before placing the pizzas in the large tiled pizza oven at the end of the counter. The food is ready in about 90 seconds, as promised. The pizzas come out glistening, with perfect, charcoaled crusts, and are placed on square silver serving trays. They are large enough to be shared, but guests have no problem finishing an entire pizza on their own.

The pizza has a thin crust, and the flavors are delicate and simple — not at all overwhelming or processed. It is evident that the vegetables on the Vegetariana Rosa pizza are roasted in-house and that flavor is held to a high standard. The consistency of the crust — moist and doughy while remaining thin and crispy — is reminiscent of pizza in Italy; other American pizzas do not have this quality. The round shape of the pizza is a welcome departure from the elongated pizzas at &pizza.

The decor and ambience of the restaurant also improve the customer experience. The first floor has many red and white accents, like the banister, the counter and the wood-fire oven. The counter is beautifully decorated with colorful mosaic tiles, and a brick wall lies behind it;

these features add an urban sophistication to the establishment. Even the staff contributes to the charm: The chef sports a bright white, green and red Italian bandana and the other employees wear white pants with bright red shirts.

After receiving their pizzas, guests head up the stairs and enjoy their meals at wooden tables with silver metal chairs. On the brick walls, chalkboards share fun information about the authenticity of the restaurant, such as the oven’s cooking temperature, the ingredients that make the dough so good and the restaurant’s “secrets” to its success — including the staff’s experience and the lava stone baking surface. Upon exiting down the stairs, guests see “Grazie, Ciao!” written in red, loopy script on the wall, adding to the Italian atmosphere.

For the amount of food and the experience guests receive at 90 Second Pizza — for only around $10 — this restaurant is highly recommended. Its food is simple and delicious, it is an easy walk from campus and it is a fun, fast and cheap place to go with friends on a weeknight after class or for a weekend get-together. On a future visit, grab a lemon and mint–flavored San Pellegrino and order the Pizza Bianca, topped with mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms. A meal from Georgetown’s new pizza joint is worth the 90–second wait.

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