Delancey
Pizza restaurant · Ballard ·
Wood-fired pizzas, Jersey salad, and chocolate chip cookies.
Wood-fired pizzas, Jersey salad, and chocolate chip cookies.
"This Ballard pizza staple is pretty freaking impossible to get into on any given night—unless you show up circling the block like a vulture 10 minutes before they open, or you happen to be Beyoncé. But it's our gift to you to announce that they do take online reservations for parties of 6-11 people, and not many take advantage of it. So the trick here is to do exactly that. Collect five buddies and fill your table with natural wine, blistery pepperoni pies, and a crunchy romaine salad as tall and majestic as a birthday cake. Delancey is primarily a walk-in restaurant, but it has a limited number of reservations for parties of less than six Tuesday through Thursday, and larger group reservations every night. For the latter, choose either 5:30pm or 7:30pm (or 5pm and 7pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Weekends can be dicier, but if you plan two weeks in advance, you'll be eating pizza before you know it, as all of the date-night couples wait outside sniffing your pepperoni in jealousy." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley
"Even if you just popped in this pizzeria for a glass of Austrian natural bubbles and small plates like burrata in a pesto pool served with flatbread shards or the mountainous romaine-based Jersey Salad with shaved carrots and really good croutons, that’d be enough to have a satisfying meal. But you should prioritize the charred pies topped with things like hot salami, caramelized Walla Walla sweet onions, kalamata olives, and summer corn. The space is also an exciting, minimalist hangout perfect for anything from a date to a family dinner, powered by tea candles and good smells coming from the wood oven. Delancey is primarily a walk-in restaurant, but it has a limited number of reservations for parties of less than six Tuesday through Thursday, and larger group reservations every night. For the latter, choose either 5:30pm or 7:30pm (or 5pm and 7pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Weekends can be dicier, but if you plan two weeks in advance, you'll be eating pizza before you know it, as all of the date-night couples wait outside sniffing your pepperoni in jealousy." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley
"New York and Chicago are not the only pizza towns in this country. Exhibit A: Delancey. Even if you just stopped in for a glass of natural bubbles and small plates like burrata in a pesto puddle served with olive oil-ed flatbread shards or the mountainous romaine-based Jersey Salad with shaved carrots and grana padano, that’d be enough to have a satisfying meal. But you should prioritize the blistered pies topped with things like fennel pork sausage, caramelized Walla Walla sweet onions, kalamata olives, and more. The space is also an exciting room perfect for anything from a date to a family dinner, powered by candlelit darkness and good smells coming from the wood oven. It can get quite busy in here, so the best way to avoid a significant wait is to show up a few minutes before they open, or round up some friends for a pizza party. Delancey will accept online reservations for groups of six or more every night, but there are also a few smaller tables available to book Tuesdays through Thursdays. How to get into Delancey Delancey is primarily a walk-in restaurant, but it has a limited number of reservations for parties of less than six Tuesday through Thursday, and larger group reservations every night. For the latter, choose either 5:30pm or 7:30pm (or 5pm and 7pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Weekends can be dicier, but if you plan two weeks in advance, you'll be eating pizza before you know it, as all of the date-night couples wait outside sniffing your pepperoni in jealousy. RESERVE A TABLE WITH RESERVE A TABLE Food Rundown Jersey Salad This is essentially the Rugrats’ Ice Cream Mountain of salad: a towering mound of crisp romaine dressed perfectly with Italian dressing, grated grana, cabbage, carrot ribbons, and chunky croutons that absorb the vinaigrette like a software engineer once had to absorb javascript. We could eat an entire bucket of this refreshing heap. Burrata Burrata is unstoppable on its own. But add toasted pepitas, shingles of flatbread, and a bright green pesto, and this is a standout appetizer that shouldn’t be missed, even though you’re about to eat so much more fresh cheese. Sausage Pie We can’t get enough of Delancey’s sausage. It has a subtle note of crunched-up fennel seed that highlights the pork without overpowering it, and when the rendered fat swirls with the mozzarella, it makes us feel like what George Frideric Handel (probably) felt when he finally finished that Hallelujah thing. Hot Salami Pie Delancey’s classic tomato-based cheese pie is excellent. So when you add Zoe’s salami, it’s also going to be excellent. Sliced onions are thrown on the pizza before baking, and while they do soften a bit, it’s not quite enough to cook out the abrasiveness—so if you don’t love raw onion or you plan on kissing another person, perhaps reconsider. White Pie A stunning crust canvas of mozzarella and ricotta that melt together like volcanic magma. We highly recommend adding prosciutto to this one, kale, and/or sweet corn (when it’s in season)." - Aimee Rizzo
"In a city where wood-fired pizzarias are popping up like mole mounds, Delancey rises above with superb service, ambiance, and attention to detail. Their starters are reliably awesome, their pies are artfully prepared with top-notch fixings, and their cocktail and wine lists never disappoint. And don't even think about skipping the chocolate chip cookie with gray sea salt... You've got room. Trust us." - Brooks Running Global Creative
"If you despise birthday attention but were coerced into a celebration by someone who unconditionally loves you, it’s probably best not to fight it at this point. Rounding up five more folks, some pies, and a bottle of natural bubbles at Delancey is the perfect way to slap together a low-key evening that’s way better than staying home with a sad candle-jabbed Safeway cupcake. Since they only take reservations for parties of six or more, it makes last-minute planning easy. Plus, Delancey’s charred pizzas and mountainous salads are easily shareable, and a freshly baked chocolate chunk cookie loaded with salt flakes is the greatest no-big-deal birthday dessert you could ever ask for. Delancey is primarily a walk-in restaurant, but it has a limited number of reservations for parties of less than six Tuesday through Thursday, and larger group reservations every night. For the latter, choose either 5:30pm or 7:30pm (or 5pm and 7pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Weekends can be dicier, but if you plan two weeks in advance, you'll be eating pizza before you know it, as all of the date-night couples wait outside sniffing your pepperoni in jealousy." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley