Co-owners and brothers Kevin and Shawn Malone are part of the new generation of environmentally conscious restaurateurs. They turned a historic freight depot into a family oriented neighborhood pizzeria that serves delicious eats with mostly local, organically grown ingredients and great tasting microbrews.
The old entrance of the freight depot has been turned into an outside seating area, with enough tables to double the capacity of the somewhat cramped main restaurant floor. Inside is the restaurant is the famously hot wood oven (at 750 degrees) that gives the pizzas, calzones, appetizers and some deserts an advantage against most of the competitors. The day we ate there, the place was bustling with families and young singles.
For an appetizer, we ordered the Bubbly Spinach and Cheese Dip with toasted flatbread points.What made this dish original for us was the way it was flash cooked in the hot wood oven, which formed a tasty crust, yet left the inside creamy and runny. That is the way we like our dips. We also tried the refreshing Caesar Salad (our own personal taste runs to more dressing, which we felt the salad could have used). For the main course we sampled two pizzas, a large Smokey Blue and a kid’s size “nitrate free” Pepperoni. We always like it when institutions care about the health and well being of our families and children, so we applaud the Malone brothers.
Smokey Blue turned out to be a combination of Gorgonzola, wood roasted onions, smoked bacon, organic tomato sauce, and rosemary with a light Balsamic glaze. It was an innovative pizza combination with a distinct Gorgonzola, bacon and onion flavors. We would have preferred our onions to be both finer and more chopped up, as well and more caramelized. Though the pizza crust was definitely thin and tasty, it would need to shed another ¼ inch before matching other thin crusted original Italian beauties. To complement our pizza, we tried and enjoyed the Flying Dog Old Scratch Lager from Maryland, which was a smooth amber colored lager with small bubbles. Our children loved the Pepperoni pizza that was perfectly balanced with the tangy tomato sauce.
For dessert, and at the insistence of our children, we ordered the chocolate chip cookie sundae. This consisted of a scoop of cookie dough that is quickly baked in the wood fire oven until it forms a crusty outside with a soft and moist inside, served with ice cream. This was a hit with the kids, but most importantly with the wives. Fireworks Pizza is a fine family oriented restaurant with tasty comfort food. Instead of needing to trek all the way down to DC for a truly gourmet pizza, Loudoun County residents can now elect to stay closer to home and eat at the Fireworks Pizza.
201 Harrison Street, SE Leesburg, VA 20175
Tel: (703) 779-8400
Hours of Operation:
M-S 11:30 AM – Closing
The Dock at Lansdowne is the culmination of over 20 years of food industry experience of owners Scott and Rick. They have created a warm and inviting neighborhood restaurant that is perfect for a refreshing drink on the patio, a quick bite to eat while on the go or full dinner faire. Rick, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, demands only the freshest ingredients for the menu.
