Skip to main content

Pizzeria Paradiso in Old Town Alexandria closes for good

pizza
Pizzeria Paradiso’s Old Town Alexandria location is closing. (Courtesy Pizzeria Paradiso)

The Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, location of Pizzeria Paradiso is closing permanently.

The Old Town location closed temporarily at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Owner Ruth Gresser cites the reason to close permanently as unsuccessful lease negotiations.

The Old Town Pizzeria Paradiso location opened in 2010.

Its locations in Dupont Circle and Spring Valley Village remain open for dine-in, takeout and delivery. The location in Hyattsville, Maryland, also remains open for dine in pickup and delivery. Its Georgetown location is open for takeout and delivery.

Old Town Alexandria won’t completely lose Pizzeria Paradiso pizzas.

It is hosting a farewell walk-by event at the 124 King St. location on Oct. 4 at 1 p.m., with pizza, T-shirts and souvenirs.

Gressler has also partnered with Port City Brewing for once-a-month events that will include “pizza nights” at the brewery or DIY pizza kits that will be available at Port City’s Alexandria location for $25. The kits include ingredients and detailed preparation instructions from Gresser, plus a Port City six-pack.

The original Dupont Circle Pizzeria Paradiso opened in 1991.

America 250: How people ordered their ready-to-assemble homes from a catalog

For decades, Americans could browse a catalog, choose a home and order it by mail. Sears, Roebuck and Company was a prominent manufacturer of mail-order homes. The company sold about 70,000 to 75,000 homes from 1908 to 1940, according to the Sears Archives. Its catalogs offered more than 400 different house styles and the listed prices could range from around $200 to $6,000. Customers even had the option of designing their own home and submitting the blueprint to Sears.
Read Next Story