I recently had the chance to visit Bella Pizza with my wife (Dough Mama), and son (Lil' Doughboy). Bella Pizza has been serving New York style pizza on NE Alberta Street for 15 years. They offer "by the slice," whole pies, "to go," and delivery through Caviar. Their pies are ~22" and their slices are huge. This is definitely one of the better deals I have seen in Portland.
During our visit, we got a chance to speak with the owner, Linda Zumoff, to hear a bit about their history. We couldn't have asked for a friendlier hostess. Linda has always worked in the food and beverage industry, honing her skills as a natural foods baker in California for a decade before heading to Portland. This is where she developed Bella's famous vegan spread and did a lot of experimenting with pan pizza. She discovered NE Alberta St in 2000 and knew a pizza shop would be perfect for this up and coming neighborhood. How right she was!
As I mentioned, Bella specializes in thin crust, naturally leavened, New York style pizza. Linda gives a lot of credit to her first pizza baker, John Fitzgerald (a New Jersey native and now owner of Mezza Luna in Eugene) for his contributions to their style.
Of all the pizzerias I have been to so far, this is where I would come to watch a Blazers or Timbers game. This blog is about pizza, but I couldn't help but notice the energy around the Blazer game, that was playing on the big screen when I visited.
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| Margherita / Sauvie Sunset |
The pies at Bella are LARGE. Since it was just Dough Mama and I, we opted for one pie. The Sauvie Sunset is a white sauce pie with salami, feta, Mama Lil's, red onions, and honey. You know I love that red onion, Mama's, and honey combo! This pie was great! The toppings were spot on - perfectly balanced. All super fresh and excellent. I loved it. So much so, that I have since made it at home.
The other half was a Margherita. The Marga was also very good. It had sliced tomatoes under the basil, something I am liking more and more. The red sauce was solid. Great texture, but slightly light in flavor. There was plenty of mozza and basil. The chopped basil isn't my favorite approach to the Marga, but there was an ample amount and it was fresh.
The crust is east coast style, thin crust. They are definitely hitting on the thin crust, but I prefer a more flavorful crust with noticeable cornicoine on the outside and char on the under side of the pie. Again, it is a solid pie, but I think to take Bella to the next level, they should continue to progress with their dough and bake with a focus on a bit more flavorful crust.
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| PDX and Lil' Doughboy |
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| Caesar Salad |
For the first time in 26 Portland pizza visits, I HAD A SALAD! This is hopefully the start of a healthier trend for me. 😀 The dressing was fantastic. Dough Mama and I were glad we ordered this before our pies made their way to the table.
Bella is a great neighborhood Za shop. We were glad to make it out, meet Linda, and enjoy their pizza. We will be back next time we are in the area or for a Blazers or Timbers game!
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