(Pi)zza

I was planning on writing my next post about something more classically St. Louis, like the Arch, but then I ended up eating at District of Pi Pizzeria in Penn Quarter in DC–which believe it or not has very strong ties to St. Louis. The Arch will have to wait.

District of Pi started out as Pi Pizzeria in St. Louis, in the Delmar Loop, an area which I will definitely be writing about in a future post. The restaurant became so popular that it soon expanded to two other locations in St. Louis. It also has a food truck and a take-out only place. Click here for a review of the St. Louis restaurant.

Photo by prettywar-stl

How did Pi end up in DC? In October of 2008, then Senator Barack Obama gave a campaign speech at a rally in St. Louis at the Arch. During his brief stay in St. Louis, Obama tried pizza from Pi (he knew Pi’s owner, Chris Sommers, after meeting him a year earlier at a fundraiser), and loved it. In fact, he loved it so much that he later had Pi pizza delivered all the way to the White House after he took office. Sommers cooked the pizzas in the West Wing. In honor of Obama’s election, Pi served Broccoli Obama Pizza back in St. Louis. Obama has called Pi’s his favorite pizza. Perhaps due to this presidential connection, DC seemed like a perfect place for Pi to expand. District of Pi opened in Penn Quarter over the summer.

Pi’s pizza is amazing. I personally like the thin crust best (it’s crispy with a nice cornmeal flavor), but the deep dish is also good. You can mix and match to create your own pizzas or choose from a list of pre-designed pies, all named after various city neighborhoods–a lot of them in St. Louis. My favorite make-your-own-pizza is cheese with green peppers, onions, and sundried tomatoes. I would also recommend the bada bing salad (field greens, toasted almonds, gorgonzola cheese, dried bing cherries, with raspberry vinaigrette)–my Dad’s favorite.

Photo by sj_sanders

Photo by prettywar-stl

I felt totally at home at the DC restaurant (I love anything out here that reminds me of St. Louis), and the pizza tasted just at good as it does back in the 3-1-4 (314 is the main area code for St. Louis, which also happens to be the same as the first three digits of Pi. Coincidence?)

Next time you’re in Penn Quarter (DC), stop by District of Pi or track down their food truck to get a taste of St. Louis. Hopefully that will hold you over until you get the chance to try the real thing.