Armand’s Chicago Pizzeria

The pizza here is admittedly not great. BUT, they have a lunchtime pizza buffet. The aftermath is guaranteed to be awful, but every so often my memories fade and I return. If you eat here during the workday make sure to clear your afternoon calendar.
I’m a quantity over quality kind of guy, so 3 stars. The «salad bar» is a joke and sometimes the pizza isn’t fresh, BUT IT’S ALL YOU CAN EAT!
(They also have great prices on beer.)

This was a great pizza place! We took a large group there tonight and they handled it perfectly!
They offered several different delicious pizzas buffet style and also had a very fresh salad bar.

To have «Chicago Pizzeria» in the title I expected to receive Chicago style pizza. Just because a pizza is made in a deep dish does not mean it is Chicago style.
We had a large pizza with meats and artichoke ($ 17.50) and wings (about two dozen for $ 19) delivered. Delivery was quicker than the chain pizza stores in the area and the delivery fee was only $ 1. However, the pizza wasn’t worth ordering again. The dough was so thick that the crust looked and tasted like a bland pretzel. There was red sauce under the cheese; it was not your Chicago style tomato-​chunk sauce on top of everything like I was expecting. The wings were small but the flavor was good and they weren’t soggy. We ordered the buffalo but the sauce came on the side, not on top. The blue cheese dressing on the side had huge chunks of cheese in it and tasted like it may have been house-​made.
Armand’s isn’t somewhere I’d want to go back to unless I wanted a salad with blue cheese dressing. The dressing was the best part of the meal.

Relaxed, casual environment with helpful staff. They have a lunch buffet and low priced drafts. I tried the“Chicago deep dish,” which may have not been most authentic but still good.

This review is for the deep dish: if you have eaten real deep dish pizza in Chicago, DO NOT TRY!!! If this was called Armands pizza then it would be ok. But do not call yourself a Chicago Pizzeria and serve crappy dry deep dish pizza. Even UNOs tastes better. Smh.

This is probably the best deep dish I’ve had in the area. It’s basic deep dish pizza done right — nothing too fancy but they get the taste right for sure. The service is excellent and the staff friendly. It’s a relaxed environment to be in and an excellent spot to satisfy your deep dish hunger.

The delivery service will not deliver to the door. They call you from the vehicle and make you walk out to them. This is delivery in 2015? Customer lost!

My friend really enjoys the pizza here and I decided to be nice and place an order for him. While waiting for delivery and excessive amount of time I stepped away from my phone and unfortunately missed a call. This was the pizza company calling to tell us that they were outside and that we needed to come out and get the pizza. Unfortunately when I pay for pizza delivery I expect that pizza to be delivered to my door not a phone call that says please come and get your pizza. Regardless of the quality of this product I will not be ordering from Armand’s again.

Armand’s is one of those things from childhood that seems much less impressive as an adult. I was once a regular at their (defunct) location on Connecticut, and at some of their suburban outlets. Having now sampled many of the best pizza places, I’m not terribly excited by their limited menu options (especially for special dietary needs). The quality of basic ingredients isn’t special, and the atmosphere surely does not match the charm of the one I used to go to. The pizza I got was rather unevenly cooked.
That being said, it’s one of the closest places to eat to the Senate, and that’s worth quite a bit. And if you need something filling, some nice bread and cheese, you’ll be satisfied here. They also do a bit of a lunch buffet which includes a few pizzas and a salad bar.

Delicious pizza. I tried the Arti-​Pesto, Greek, and BBQ Chicken. All were really good. If I lived here I would frequent Armand’s often. Staff was very nice and attentive. The evening weather was beautiful so we enjoyed dinner on the patio.

I enjoy coming to Armand’s, as it’s an inexpensive way to fill-​up at lunch. Pizza is mediocre, but good enough.
However, it disturbs me how many seemingly intelligent restaurant-​goers think it’s alright to take their dirty plate back up to the buffet for refills. Armand’s provides clean plates next to the buffet, and they will bus your table of dirty plates while you are getting your re-​fill.
Having said that, the manager on-​duty at lunch today (Thursday, August 13) seems to think that merely providing the option of a clean plate is good enough. He needs to be requiring a clean plate upon refills.
DC’s Food Code (
) clearly states the following:
Section 202.10
The person in charge shall ensure that consumers are notified that clean tableware is to be used when they return to self-​service areas such as salad bars and buffets as specified in § 814.
Section 814.2
814.2 (except for beverage refills) Self-​service consumers shall not be allowed to use soiled tableware, including single-​service articles, to obtain additional food from the display and serving equipment.
Obviously, this issue comes into play at most any all-​you-​can-​eat buffet. Buffet employees (including those at Armand’s) need to be diligent in not allowing customer to take their dirty plates to the buffet for refills.

I went to Armand’s expecting decent pizza, but all I got was a let down.
I hadn’t visited this location since 2009, but I had a good memory of the quality of the food. I hate to say that my experience there now didn’t live up to what I remembered.
The service wasn’t bad at all, and prices were fairly reasonable, but the pizza was just… boring. The sauce was bland, and just tasted like tomato paste straight out of a can. The deep crust was like eating a flavorless bread stick, but at least it had good crunch and a soft inside. The cheese and pepperoni didn’t really make up for anything — the blandness of the crust and sauce couldn’t be cancelled by any amount of greasy goodness that any toppings could have brought (these weren’t anything to write home about, actually).
The place isn’t bad, per se, but is more of a mediocre spot I wouldn’t go out of my way to visit.

Armand’s Chicago Pizzeria was my first Washington, DC local restaurant when I arrived last week and was trying to squeeze in some sightseeing before spending the next 3 days in a conference.
The first thing, and it has been noted in several reviews, is that this is not Chicago-​style pizza. It’s simply not, though perhaps they offer it and it just wasn’t available on their buffet table. That said, I was still happy with this fun little joint located inside the bottom floor of an older building. It’s sort of the stereotypical «village» type pizzeria with the overhead awning, outdoor dining, and a feeling that you’ve entered a neighborhood. I instantly liked it.
Armand’s actually has six locations and I visited this Capitol Hill area location. They have other options in Maryland and Delaware. The entrance way had an open door and I will admit to having been attracted by the $ 7.99 lunch buffet (not including drink). The buffet included pizza and salad options — it seemed like most of the pizza was deep dish. I will admit that the pizza counter was a touch high for someone in a wheelchair, though the staff were helpful when I needed it.
I ordered my usual unsweetened iced tea and did get my always desired refill. I also found the outside dining option to be a quite beautiful setting. Washington D.C. is interesting because the high-​powered, working class, and economically disadvantaged all seem to co-​exist. There was a tremendous diversity in Armand’s and I found it pretty darn cool.
This was a great spot to just chill out and soak in D.C. I’d been floating around to monuments and had just done an outreach event. I wanted to relax while waiting for my hotel room to be ready. My server was friendly and helpful — the owner was warm and helpful. The pizza, and I ate very little because I’ve been on a healthier binge lately, was quite good with ample toppings and tremendous flavor.
This certainly wasn’t the best pizza I’ve had — not even close. It felt like a neighborhood pizzeria and offered good pizza at a good price with good service. I was allowed to linger at a table for a little bit, while also enjoying my time in that cozy little corner of a restaurant.
Armand’s Chicago Pizzeria also offers alcohol at good prices and, quite honestly, I was surprised at its reasonable prices across the board. If I’m ever in D.C. again, I would easily visit Armand’s.

Armand, you make some awesome pizzas! The dough, the cheese, *homer simpson noises*

False advertising. This is not Chicago-​style pizza. The crust is too thin and there’s no layering. Chicago style should almost be like a casserole, a big, cheesy casserole layered with spinach and meat, topped with herbed tomatoes and set into a deep, buttery crust.
Now, according to Wikipedia, Chicago is also known for a thin crust style with a crunchier crust that’s cut into squares. I’m familiar with this Midwestern style. It’s done to great effect by the LaRosa’s chain in my home town of Cincinnati. If that’s what they’re going for here, they’ve also missed the mark, because their sauce is terrible. And besides, people see Chicago-​style they expect deep dish, Wikipedia and «thin-​crust-​style» be damned.
Sigh, the search for good pizza in DC continues.

This is not the Armand’s I remember. Once a passable stuffed pizza, now a cheap fluffy crust, not stuffed, with spinach that tastes distinctly canned. My daughter, normally a pizza nut, made the icky face and ate only the crust. Given the puffy disappointment the crust offered, that doesn’t say much for the rest of the product. Will not be ordering from Armand’s again… Best to wait for the next time I go to Chicago, however long it is.

Used to eat at Armand’s in Tenley Circle all the time when I went to AU. Fast forward 30 years and I read that they were closing that location. I took my teenage son and drove 5 ½ hours to DC to eat pizza there one last time. Now, I have to imagine that between NNJ and DC there are at least 1,000 pizza joints, probably more. But none this good. It was actually worth the ride to eat there. Armand’s will always remain my favorite pizza. So, so sorry that they closed.

As a noteworthy caveat, I am not one to claim to be a connoisseur of true Chicago pizza, so I will not venture to compare Armand’s pizza to the authentic variety of that found in that part of the country.
With this important disclaimer out of the way, I must say that my entire family loves Armand’s. The crust is thick and buttery and nestles a ton of yummy cheese that serves as a vast bed of flavor for the final layer of pepperoni that only adds well to our pizza-​eating experience. At times, when we are especially hungry and order garlic cheese bread as an appetizer, our satisfaction level increases further still.
I first discovered this place in 2008 when accompanying a coworker there. Immediately, I was hooked; and, once I brought the boys there, their sentiments about the food were instantly just as enthusiastically synonymous with mine as we now uniformly share a persistent eagerness to return whenever we are in the mood for great-​tasting pizza!
Better still, the management and staff are courteous, attentive, and friendly. By this point, I literally call ahead of time to place a dine-​in order and, by the appointed time, we arrive with food ready to be served. We truly do feel like valued customers, which is among the reasons why we regularly come back time and again. For those out there who do know what real Chicago pizza should taste like, please do share recommendations of what places are good in DC that we should visit.
Ironically because of the popularity of this establishment, a brief word of caution. Especially on Fridays and Saturdays during Summer months, it would do visitors well to call ahead to make sure the restaurant is open to the public and not closed off due to being reserved for a private event. On several occasions when we made our way out there but without having called ahead, we were sorely disappointed to find our trip to be for nothing. Luckily, there are other options around town nearby. But, those are other reviews for other times.

For delivery pizza, this is fairly good. I ordered a deep dish with broccoli and it was fine. Plenty of cheese, which is appreciated. I wouldn’t go out of my way to go here, but it’s not the worst pizza in the world.

A plain place that’s OK for a quick bite and a cheap good beer, Sam lager on tap for $ 3 and craft bottles like Dogfish Head and Flying Dog was $ 4. A solid bet if you’re passing thru Union Station bcos it’s only a short walk away, and these guys are cheaper and a lot friendlier. A better bet in fine weather bcos of the huge outdoor patio.
Only three taps at this Armand’s Pizzeria but a long, long list of specialty pies like Bacon Cheeseburger, Meetza and even Hawaiian — pineapple on a pie is sacrilege to some but my family loves it! All-​you-​can-​eat lunch buffet daily for $ 8.
This visit I held back, only tried bread and salad. Garlic bread had way too much cheese and hadn’t been toasted long enough, cheap at $ 4 but not recommended. A Greek salad was overwhelming, huge, with olives, tomatoes, artichoke, pickled green hot peppers, red onions and feta chunks on top, mediocre balsamic dressing, a meal for just $ 8.50.
I got a chuckle from the menu description of Armand’s garlic bread: «Baked Italian roll brushed with garlic butter & smoked with mozzarella or spinach». Uh. yeah. Maybe they can teach me how to smoke something with spinach :) The friendly staff laughed with me, couldn’t explain that one either.