(Image: Roma Roma)
You may have heard that 12th Ave’s newest pizza joint Roma Roma is going to celebrate its opening this week by handing out free slices Thursday night.
As we welcome Roma Roma, here is some more good news about another 12th Ave pizza sensation that burned brightly but ultimately didn’t last on the street.
In late 2023, Capitol Hill bid goodbye to Blotto and its buzzworthy, near perfect sourdough crusts, The team of young restaurateurs behind the project said they were ready for something new after two years of making a go of it at 12th and Denny.
This winter, Jordan Koplowitz and Christy Wyble, two of the partners behind Blotto, are being recognized for excellence at his new food and drink project far from Capitol Hill. CHS reported on Capitol Hill and the Central District’s 2026 James Beard Award semifinalists here. Another with neighborhood ties getting a James Beard nod this year is Koplowitz and Wyble’s Starla’s up in Bellingham where Koplowitz is a semifinalist for the Pacific Northwest region’s best chef honors:
Koplowitz is the only nominee in Washington to be based outside of Seattle, the Cascadia Daily reports:
Starla’s opened on State Street as a natural wine bar in August 2024, with Koplowitz and co-owner Christy Wyble debuting their pizza menu the following February. Since then, the eatery has received rave reviews for its natural wine and ultra-crispy, long-fermented sourdough pizza. In a May 2025 Seattle Times article, food writer Bethany Jean Clement describes Starla’s pizza as featuring “tenderness at its center, a golden-wheaty taste, the perfect pull.”
Blotto fans, we’re sorry you had to read that.
Roma Roma, meanwhile, is ready to start a new era of 12th Ave pizza this week with “by-the-cut” Roman-style pizza project from chef Forrest Brunton a couple blocks south of Blotto’s old location. With plans for a Friday opening, Roma Roma is launching with free pizza Thursday night:
On Thursday Feb 5, starting at 4pm until they run out, Roma Roma will be giving away free pizza. It’s an opportunity to get the inside taste and to celebrate one day before they officially open! All are welcome, and Roma Roma encourages to arrive early as they will have several kinds of pizza (and several rounds), but only until they run out.
We’ll see you in line at 1610 12th Ave. Tell them CHS sent you.
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