ORD Pizzeria - Montrose and Ashland

Last weekend, I attended the "friends and family" opening of ORD Pizzeria. The owner, Daniel Bridge, has been hard at work these last few months, and it really shows. I met him a couple years ago through our SO's, who work together. It's been great to hear what started as an idea come to fruition.

I have too much respect for this board to oversell what ORD Pizzeria is putting out. That being said, this is damn good pizza. I see it being the best option for miles, and even a special trip for others. A likely GNR in 1-2 years time.

Behold: The oven. It's goes to 6!




A work in progress:


Their version of a Hawaiian:


Four cheese. I snagged the piece with the inner bubble:





ORD should be open this weekend. If you get a chance, say hi to Daniel. He WANTS feedback, and said he'll always be adjusting based on it. Really, an all around stand-up guy that is in it to please.

ORD Pizzeria
1607 W. Montrose
773-327-9200
ordpizzeria.com (currently not up at time of posting)

Edited once to fix a typo, and change "wife" to "SO"; I always forget that they aren't married.

He wants feedback? Ok...

Daniel,

Why are you naming your pizza place after O'Hare Airport and cutting your pizzas like you are from the East Coast? I can see by the menu and the pizzas that this is hardly "ORD" style pizza. So it does seem that he's putting out an East Coast/New York style pizza, which of course means, he must change the name immediately.

That being said, if it's great, I'll check it out and best of luck to you. P.S. - Change the name.

"LGA Pizza" just doesn't roll off the tongue like ORD

Sweetbread wrote:I have to much respect for this board to oversell what ORD Pizzeria is putting out. That being said, this is damn good pizza. I see it being the best option for miles, and even a special trip for others. A likely GNR in 1-2 years time.

This place is right by my house. And so is Spacca Napoli. The Faulds oven and location bode well. The photos leave me skeptical, but I will be checking it out and hoping for the best. With SN, Apart, Jimmy's and even Himmel's/DOC in the 'hood, best for miles seems like hyperbole if not an oversell.

Anyway, quite a few interesting openings in the general vicinity -- I'm definitely excited to see sure things Redhot Ranch and Big & Little's open in Lakeview in addition to this place in nearby Ravenswood.

JeffB wrote:

Sweetbread wrote:I have to much respect for this board to oversell what ORD Pizzeria is putting out. That being said, this is damn good pizza. I see it being the best option for miles, and even a special trip for others. A likely GNR in 1-2 years time.

This place is right by my house. And so is Spacca Napoli. The Faulds oven and location bode well. The photos leave me skeptical, but I will be checking it out and hoping for the best. With SN, Apart, Jimmy's and even Himmel's/DOC in the 'hood, best for miles seems like hyperbole if not an oversell.

Anyway, quite a few interesting openings in the general vicinity -- I'm definitely excited to see sure things Redhot Ranch and Big & Little's open in Lakeview in addition to this place in nearby Ravenswood.

That was my thought exactly - "best option for miles" seems like quite an oversell given the other nearby options putting out some damn good pizza AND the initial declarative NOT to oversell. I'm not dissin' ORD as I haven't been there, just saying that's a heck of a pronouncement given the local competition. After recently moving I'm not down the street of all those places like I used to be but if I'm back up that way and in the mood for pizza I'll keep ORD on my list of options.

Made it into ORD pizza yesterday for a couple slices and I left very impressed.

The pizza they are making is pretty unique really relying on the balance of ingredients. The crust is light as a feather with a great crispiness on the bottom. It's quite different from foldable NY style or chewy Neopolitan. The toppings, sauce, and cheese are applied sparingly. The cheese is a creamy mozzarella that's quite stretchy and plays off the tangy sauce and fresh toppings beautifully. The crust has even charring which lends just enough depth without detracting from the careful balancing act on display. Also the owner made the slices to order which was a great touch and really reflected in the quality of the finished product.

After two slices I was quite full yet satisfied. This is as light as pizza gets and I really enjoyed it. I typically prefer a heavier hand on most things, but ORD pizza showed me that pizza can succeed as a light snack as well. I'm thrilled to welcome them to the neighborhood.

I have been meaning to add a data point to this thread for a while now. We've gotten delivery from here a couple times now and I've been very pleased. Pizza talk can quickly devolve into ramen/xlb-esque authenticity/style squabbles, so I won't play expert but will say they are doing something different style wise than some of the other quality north side pizza options. Like turkob's experience, toppings were applied with a deft hand and crusts had nice char/flavor, unlike turkob I still folded my slices NY style to facilitate faster scarfing. Leftovers reheated in a hot cast iron skillet inside a 400 degree oven were almost even better. ORD is a quality option and will fit in nicely into the Marie's, Spacca, Jimmy's rotation.

so what style is this pizza exactly? It looks enticing from the pictures I've seen, but clearly this ain't Chicago style thin crust cut into squares. It looks a little too thick to be NY style, any word on what style the head chef calls this? I would really like to try this out, but it's really hard for me to not eat deep dish when I eat pizza.

I've ordered from here several times over the last few months and have really enjoyed the pizza and salads. It's more NY style than Chicago thin crust, though it's a bit on the thicker crusted side than traditional NY. The crust is delicious though and they have some great options, I've tried the Venus on several occasions (roasted red peppers, sausage carmalized onions), our usual sausage and spinach, and the other night we had the Uncle Jesse (ground meatball, green pepper, mushroom and Gorgonzola) and that was excellent. They offer free delivery, which is a nice touch!

What's their delivery boundaries?

Not much to add beyond what is previously said, but I will add in that I stop by frequently to pick up pizza (I live a block away), and this place is always doing a very brisk takeout and delivery on top of the tables in the restaurant (there are maybe 20 seats total, its small)- they've clearly attracted a neighborhood following in a very short time. I've loved everything I have had there- the Venus, the Louie, and a couple "create your own". The woman at the counter told me a couple weeks back the Rose was one of the top sellers and is on my list to try next.

I don't know that I would go so far as to say it is the best option for miles, but I would say however that it definitely holds its own with a unique style in a neighborhood with many great options near. I'm very glad to see it here in the hood.

Also, website now works, its simple just a menu:

http://ordpizzeria.com/

A nice profile of the owner and more importantly, his Fauld's oven.

RESTORING A BADASS CHICAGO PIZZA OVEN AT ORD PIZZERIA

http://fooditor.com/restoring-badass-ch ... -pizzeria/

From the Web site:

ATTENTION!

O.R.D. Pizzeria is temporarily closed. Due to family health issues, we needed to step away for a few weeks. We expect to reopen by mid-October. Please continue to check our website and social media for up to date information. We are very sorry for this interruption, but we will be back and ready to boogie soon! We cannot thank you enough for your understanding in patience. Stay tuned...

http://www.ordpizzeria.com/


I don't know when this went up, but get well soon!

Interestingly, Eater had a different take:

Acclaimed, creative thin-crust pizza spot ORD Pizzeria is currently closed at Ashland and Montrose and owner Daniel Bridge is looking to sell the restaurant “to someone who wishes to continue what we have started.” He wrote on Facebook that he made the decision due to “circumstances in my personal life” that have left him “unable to continue my life as the owner and operator of the pizzeria.” It’s been open for five years.