Pizza Parlor Friday Holler: Queen Margherita

Insalata mixta: mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, toasted pecans, and crumbled gorgonzola drizzled with a delicate balsamic reduction vinaigrette

Olive Miste: an assortment of olives (with a little chili in the oil) served with homemade bread

Queen Margherita pizza: with Buffalo mozzarella, San Marzano tomato sauce, fresh basil, and extra-virgin olive oil (here with a little prosciutto on part of the pie!)

Dattero pizza: with dates, gorgonzola, prosciutto crudo, fresh mozzarella, and a drizzle of balsamic reduction

Another view of the Dattero pizza

Puttanesca pizza: with San Marzano tomato sauce, anchovies, Gaeta olives, capers, garlic, chili flakes,and shaved grana padano cheese

A look at a Puttanesca pizza slice

Chef Devin Dukes is rolling in the dough

Pizza-spinning (just for show, as it's not the recommended way to handle the dough)

Tending to the pizza oven

Pizza di Nutella: pizza crust slathered with a chocolate-hazelnut spread (Queen Margherita also serves D'Ambrosio gelato, including the delicious pistachio flavor!)

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National Pizza Month may officially be in October, but with professional football playoffs about to begin, I’m moving it to January. [ETA: Actually, I just learned that the second full week of January is National Pizza Week. How convenient!]

I’ve tackled Queen Anne area burgers before, and now it’s time to search for some pizza within easy reach of the hill. I’ll feature one place each Friday of the month, looking for a little variety.

Eating excursions rarely take me west of Queen Anne, but when I heard good things about Queen Margherita in Magnolia, I had to give it a try. Margherita of Savoy served as Italy’s queen from 1878 to 1900, and legend has it that the Margherita pizza–made with red tomatoes, green basil, and white cheese (in honor of the Italian flag)–was named after her in 1889. Since fall 2010, she’s had this hidden gem named after her as well.

Queen Margherita is the type of neighborhood restaurant where it seems everybody knows your name. Visit more than once, and I’m sure owner Corino Bonjrada will take notice of you. When he’s not working the dining area and helping with service, he’s watching with pride as Devin Dukes prepares pizzas. These Neapolitan-style pies are made with Caputo Tipo 00 flour (silky smooth) from Italy, with the dough aged several days to ferment and develop the gluten. The pies go into a wood-fired oven (made in Naples) that reaches temperatures up to 1200 degrees, spending just 45 to 80 seconds to cook.

The pizzas are delicious. Neapolitan style means they are a slightly soft in the middle, with crisp crusts that have nice air bubbles. There are many pizza options on the menu, from the namesake Queen Margherita (great with Buffalo mozzarella) to the Puttanesca (briny and spicy) to the intriguing Dattero (with dates, gorgonzola, prosciutto crudo, fresh mozzarella, and a drizzle of balsamic reduction). As Bonjrada told me, pizza is “the most amazing and yet simple thing.”

See the photo gallery for shots of the pizza–including a special dessert pizza–along with some side dishes and a glimpse of the pizza-making.