WASHINGTON — Ruth Gresser, who opened the first Pizzeria Paradiso in Dupont Circle 27 years ago and has grown the business to five Washington area locations, is honoring other women leaders with a new rotating menu of pizza specials.
“United States of Pizza: Women’s Slice of the Pie” is a weekly series of state-themed pizzas to highlight women who are elected officials.
Gresser says she wants to highlight these women and their states with pizzas made with ingredients that are popular food traditions from their respective home states.
The first recognizes New York, in honor of Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Carolyn Maloney, Elise Stefanik, Grace Meng, Kathleen Rice, Nita Lowey, Nydia Velazquez and Yvette Clarke.
The pizza, a New York Super Bowl Pizza, is made with buffalo tomato sauce, chicken, light gorgonzola and fontina, A 9-inch New York Super Bowl Pizza is $15. A 12-inch version is $20.
A total of 10 pizzas for the series are already planned, and Pizzeria Paradiso says it will develop more in coming weeks.
Women now make up 50.8 percent of the U.S. population and 25 percent of elected officials, boosted by the 2018 elections which saw a record number of women running for an elected office.
Upcoming United States of Pizza specials include the following:
- Arizona Pozole Pizza: hominy, pork, chilies, cabbage, queso fresco and queso seco
- California Cioppino Pizza: shrimp, mussels, tomatoes, onion, peppers and Cioppino
- Connecticut New Haven Style Pizza: tomato sauce, mozzarella, oregano
- Hawaii Pineapple Farm Pizza: pineapple, prosciutto, red onion, fontina, rosemary
- Illinois Hot Dog Pizza: onion sauce , Chicago hot dogs, provolone cheese and hot dog relish
- Massachusetts Chowder Pizza: clams, bacon, potato, red onion, Béchamel sauce, parsley, parmesan
- New York Super Bowl Pizza: Buffalo tomato sauce, chicken, light gorgonzola and fontina
- Rhode Island: clams, mussels, shrimp, tomato, peppers, onion, linguica, gremolata
- Texas Chile Pizza: beef (chuck) cooked in chile sauce, orange cheddar cheese, scallions and cilantro with avocado
- Washington Apple Orchard Pizza: apples, brussels sprouts, portabella mushrooms, red onion, thyme, cheddar
Pizzeria Paradisio’s Neapolitan style pizza restaurants are in D.C.’s Dupont, Georgetown and Spring Valley neighborhoods, as well as Hyattsville, Maryland and Old Town Alexandria, Virginia .
