Emilio's Brick Oven Pizza, Owner Reza "Emilio" Azar in Sterling since 1997

[johnb]

There is a pizza place in (Sterling???) called Emilio's Brick Oven Pizza. It seems to be off the radar screen on DR, Chowhound, etc., tho Washingtonian mentioned it in its "Dirt Cheap Eats" piece. It's located more-or-less cater-corner from Wegmans, close to Belfort Furniture. I tried it a few years ago and thought it was servicable if not great. Does anyone else have an opinion, especially a recent one? Since one often sees inquiries from folks looking for places to eat near Dulles, such as the currently-active Debbie does Dulles thread, it may possibly be a useful addition to the list of possibilities.

[Pete]

I ate at Emilio's about 4 weeks ago. The pizza was serviceable enough, but not worth a special trip.

[jwhite]

John,

I have eaten there on a couple of occasions this year as I often have business in the Ashburn area. It is good for the area but I would rarely if ever eat there if it moved to DC.

[DonRocks]

Emilio's (either www.emiliossterling.com or www.eatatemilios.com) has been open since 1997, and is a classic suburban pizzeria, of great value to the neighborhood, but not a restaurant you'd travel for, unless you were me.

I'm typing this at Emilio's now, on their WiFi, and have a tinge of sadness that Mr. Reza Emil "Emilio" Azar once had the fortitude to open in Leesburg, only to have the second branch shut down.

This is very much of an outlet - an advertisement - for Boar's Head, and if you like Boar's Head products, you'll probably like the toppings and sandwich fillings here.

I ordered a large Roma ($20) with fresh mozzarella, crumbly Italian sausage, pepperoni, portobello mushrooms, and marinated, i.e., "canned" tomatoes, with my strategy being this would be an "interior only" pizza, and that proved to be correct. Despite the beautiful, wood-burning brick oven, the crust itself is not a strong point, and the outer periphery is best left alone.

Orders are taken at the counter, and a Moretti ($4.50) or Peroni ($4.00) is paid for, self-grabbed from the beverage cooler, and opened if the staff can find a bottle opener which will be lying somewhere near the register.

In many ways, this reminds me of my child comfort pizzerias, Sammy's Villa (which was much better) and Dominic's (which is a little better), or maybe even Stained Glass Pub. This is not pizza that you write about; it's pizza that you order for your kids, and then go home and turn on the TV, unaware that restaurant websites even exist.

The kids in Sterling here this evening are loving it, however, and there are dozens of pictures, photos, and posters on the wall that show Mr. Azar is active in the Sterling community, loves soccer and football, and even skydives. As I type, he himself is assembling a pizza, commiserating with a customer about the Oklahoma-Texas game, and worrying aloud about his blood sugar, just as I suppose he's been doing since 1997.