Declaration

Declaration restaurant in DC’s Shaw neighborhood offers high quality gourmet pizza with gluten-free and vegetarian options. The menu also includes several hand tossed salads, freshly made pastas and mussels right out of the brick hearth oven. Distinctive sandwiches and signature desserts are also available. Closest Metro is U Street.

We grabbed dinner here before catching a show at the 9:30 Club located directly across the street.  We started with a Caesar Salad to share that was bright with lemon, parmesan, Romaine hearts, garlic herb croutons, and Caesar dressing.  The small size was perfect for us, but a larger size is also available.

Next, we enjoyed the Clams steamed with tons of butter and herbs.  It was served with plain pizza crust to dip all that buttery goodness.

Trying not to fill up too much, we ordered one pizza to share in the Brooklyn Style base with fresh mozzarella, grated imported parmesan, crushed San Marzano tomatoes, fresh basil, and EVOO.  We then added sweet Italian sausage ($3 extra) and mushrooms ($2 extra) to the 13-inch pie.  The flavor combination was classic, with the sweetness of the sausage standing out.  The dough was very chewy but held up to all the sauce and toppings.

Overall we had a decent pre-show meal at Declaration, and would come back again.

Total Rating: 3.73
Food: 3.5, Price: 4, Service: 4, Ambience: 3.5, Accessibility: 5