Comet Ping Pong

5/21/2017

As a native Washingtonian who grew up in Northwest, I always try to support local business; especially when they're targeted by nut jobs and have right-wing conspiracy theories made up about them that incite violence.

On a more relaxed note, Comet has amazing gluten free pizza. It's probably the best gluten-free pizza I've ever tasted in my life. So much gluten free bread products are thin and crispy and what I miss most about eating gluten is that soft doughy sensation that you get when you take a bite. The crust on the pizza is just like that! I highly recommend it.

Their other options are not so gluten friendly in terms of appetizers and certainly not desserts. They do have some gluten free beers.

It's always super crowded because it's very popular so I guess that's a minus that it's loud. I've never played the ping pong but I'm sure it would be very fun. Also I wish they would deliver!

6/30/2017

In thinking of reporting yelp to BBB for removing my normal review from this. Looks like corruption?

I'll leave it again.

Pizza is very mediocre, in fact straight up bad compared to other places in the general area. Atmosphere is not the best either. Hopefully this doesn't sound like a controversial review, but can tell you one thing is for sure, this places and other places ratings can clearly be adjusted by yelp, I dont know how this dishonesty happens, but I saved their email.

4/10/2017

• 1 check-in

Hole in the wall pizza place with a game room in the back.  Comet Ping Pong is located on Connecticut Avenue about a mile north of the Van Ness UDC Train Station, close to a CVS and The Little Red Fox.  The restaurant has a lot of small tables inside and a fewer number of small tables outside in an enclosed dining area.  In the back of the restaurant, there are three ping pong tables and a foosball table for entertainment before or after you're done eating.  Service was good - water was refilled at a good rate throughout the meal.

On the Menu: The appetizers include wood-roasted vegetables (squash, cauliflower, and beets), wings, meatballs, and fried bites (mac and cheese or risotto).  Salad selection is slightly diverse and includes Caesar, arugula, Greek feta, and lentil salad.  You can select from 15 specialty pizzas and several seasonal pizzas or build your own.  $1.50 toppings include pepperoni, melted onions, potato, jalapeno, garlic, pepperoncini, capers, olives, parsley, fresh basil, and pecorino. $2.50 toppings include smoky mushrooms, roasted peppers, broccoli, spinach, merguez sausage, anchovies, smoky bacon, goat cheese, italian sausage, ricotta, sundried tomatoes, gorgonzola, feta, fontina, and artichoke.  $3.50 toppings include arugula, broccoli rabe, cauliflower, ham, chicken, and ground beef.  $4.50 toppings include la quercia prosciutto, clams, bresaola, and roasted pork.

What I Tried:
Fried Mac & Cheese Bites ($7) - While not bad, the mac & cheese bites were a little underwhelming.  For $7, I was expecting to get more than five.  The outside of each bite was nice and crunchy, but the mac & cheese inside wasn't very rich.   The meat sauce didn't really stand out either.  Although the breading was excellent, I think the filling could use some improvement.  The bites do come with a small container of marinara dipping sauce.

Build Your Own Pizza ($12.95 with sausage and pepperoncini) - I learned that pepperoncini was the Italian name for banana peppers.  The sausage was my favorite topping of the night.  Pizza crust was light and easy to chew.  I liked how the pizza didn't have too much (or too little cheese).  Sauce didn't blow me away, but it was good.

The Slam Pizza ($16.00) - This specialty pizza comes with prosciutto and arugula.  It's a pretty good combination - the prosciutto is fatty while the arugula is light.  The pizza would have been better if the prosciutto was cut into smaller pieces.  I had to tear the prosciutto pieces myself to ensure that each slice had some prosciutto on it.  Minor nitpick though.

Verdict: As a foodie who has eaten mostly in Cleveland and Atlanta over the past few years, the price point is a little high for individual pizzas.  But, the final product is good and there's an excellent variety of toppings to choose from.  Extra points for having a game room in the back.

• 

  Build Your Own Pizza with Sausage and Pepperoncini

  Build Your Own Pizza with Sausage and Pepperoncini
• 

  The Slam Pizza (prosciutto and arugula)

  The Slam Pizza (prosciutto and arugula)
• 

  Mac and Cheese bites

  Mac and Cheese bites

4/4/2017

• 1 check-in

My partner and I went to Comet Ping Pong to try it out because we had heard so much about it, and overall, the pizza is kind of overpriced and just OK.

I would definitely describe this restaurant as family friendly - we seem to be the only people without small children and babies there. I guess the word is out!

Seating was prompt for a Sunday afternoon, and there's a lot of turnaround because this is just a pizza place and it's relatively fast.

There are a lot of options for food and drink, so that's a plus. I ordered the pizza with lamb and goat cheese, and for whatever reason, about half the slices that they cut basically didn't have any ingredients on them. And for the price they were trying to charge, the amount of ingredients and flavor were just not there. Pizza Hut is a better option all things considered and it's half off these prices.

I think this place is popular because it's a family-friendly restaurant in the suburbs, it wouldn't make it in downtown DC.

6/29/2017

Excellent pizza and calzone! Pesto chicken, fennel sausage, and roast pork with broccoli rabe (calzone) - great dough and ingredients all around. Service was super and the bands in the back rocked! Fun family time with ping pong at every table in a funky space.

2/3/2017

Completely unimpressive, it reminded me of the pizza I would get at the cafeteria in high school. Peculiar decor for a pizza shop though I'm from out of town so who knows. As far as the staff goes they seemed a bit aloof with a seemingly contrived style that was hard to place.  Kinda like "Hot Topic" in the mall meets Chuck-E-Cheese
Not a fan.

3/20/2017

• 1 check-in

Love this place! The pizza is so yummy! We've been here several times and the servers have been very quick to take our order, checking back in to see how we are doing.  They have
ping pong tables in the back of the restaurant for family fun!

• 
• 
• 
• See all photos from Bob-Teresa P. for Comet Ping Pong

2/1/2017

We went here a week before the shooting happened. We went to support them after all the crazy vitriol posted online about them.

It can be pretty loud in there, there are ping pong tables in the back which is cool.

The pizza to me was average. Some interesting toppings but overall for the price I was unimpressed. Still a fine place but not my favorite.

7/4/2017

they are peds for sure, owner is very creepy, artwork is probabily pedophilic. great pizza

1/17/2017

• 1 check-in

Great pizza, friendly staff. There are a lot of signs around from the community that reference the incident. "Hang in there." "We love Comet Ping Pong." That sort of thing. Community support is definitely a great recommendation.

The atmosphere is industrial chic. It's a big space with a tall ceiling, rusty colors, and cool light fixtures.

12/6/2016

• 1 check-in
• ROTD 6/7/2017

So the 2016 word of the year according to the Oxford dictionary is "post-truth". And I wish this was a non-sequitur but we happened to be eating here a few days ago. When a gunman showed up. I'll re-write this review when I've come back a second time but I want it to be known that the staff handled the incident incredibly well.

When it became apparent that there was a gunman on the premises waitstaff quickly, and discreetly went around to tables ushering people out.

It was not the dining experience we'd expected. I'm so sorry to the staff and owners at Comet Ping Pong that your business is suffering as a result of fake news. And thank you for remaining so calm and organized in the face of a scary situation. I'll be back, but I'm still a little freaked out.

12/6/2016

I used to be a regular at Comet Ping Pong when one of my besties lived down there. And I used to love the taco-pizza and the Yalie (clam pizza). But then my friend moved to the 'burbs and I hadn't been back.

Until a few weeks ago. I was in the neighborhood running errands, and spying Comet Ping Pong as I was driving pass, I was overwhelmed with the urge to get a Yalie. Still as good as it used to be! The crust has a delicious smokeyness to it, and the clams were tender and not rubbery. YUM! I will admit that the service was a smidge slow, however, I was in no rush, as the framers needed another hour to finish up my job.

(Note: if you're one of the imbeciles that believe the current conspiracy about this place, you need to be slapped over the head and taught how to fucking fact check. Morons. And you don't deserve the yumminess of the Yalie).

11/20/2016

• 1 check-in

I visited Comet Ping Pong on election night for a quick dinner before heading over to a results watch party. I was immediately pleased that they were showing all of the election coverage on the big screens.

Overall, we got excellent service and really enjoyed our food. The beer list was impressive. We ordered one of the specialty pizzas and created one of our own and they were both delicious!

Will be back for sure!!

10/14/2016

• 2 check-ins

Food is delicious. Service sometimes a little slow but that's because they're always busy. Relatively pricey but worth it.

Get the yallie.

• 

  Yallie.

  Yallie.
• 

  Ace Cider

  Ace Cider
• 

  Menu

  Menu

3/26/2016

• 1 check-in

Wonderful pizza place to bring friends from out of town. Had some friends in town from Toronto and wanted to take them somewhere fun and unique to eat. I had seen this restaurant on Triple D and immediately thought of it. Was not disappointed.

Went in around 6:15 on a Friday night. Had to wait 20-30 for a table but that was completely expected. They have us a buzzer and we could go to the little cage next door for a drink while we waited.

Each of us ordered our own pizza. Between us we had The Jimmy, The Drive, The Cabbage Patch and The Pork. We all shared so I was able to try all four. I think they were all excellent but my favorite had to the The Jimmy. The meatballs on it were so delicious. But my second favorite what The Cabbage Patch with its Brussel Sprouts.

My friends had some IPA that was on tap but I was driving home that night and didn't try any. They did like it though.

Our waiter was funny and sweet. He took real good care of us.

Got to play ping pong too for a bit but there were a bunch of people waiting so we didn't play too long. I believe they have 4 ping pong tables and it's free to play. That was fun. Haven't played in years and it was neat to do while waiting for food.

I am very pleased I had this little gem stored to bring friends to. They really enjoyed it and I think it's a place they'll remember.

• 

  Outdoor seating is available

  Outdoor seating is available

1/11/2017

I ate here on my first day to DC after having heard about it on the radio in LA for some reason. I just had a Union Jack and I asked the girl behind the counter if the smoky pizza was a good option. She said it was really good so I decided to try it.

WOW! This pizza as the menu states, has smoked mushrooms, smoked mozzarella, smoked onions (I think), and smoked other things...  I'm pretty sure it's one of the best pizzas I've ever had in my life, and it ranks up there with the Mushroom pizza at a joint that I know of in Cedar City, Utah that has the other best pizza I've ever had in my life.

Honestly, it was so good that I thought about ordering another one just to take it to go. I actually think I might do that tomorrow before I drive up to Toronto and hang out with a friend of mine just so he can try it. But then I think, "well this pizza be good reheated?" Maybe will all just have to come out again!

But anyway, the place was great they have ping-pong and other stuff in the back like Foos ball which is pretty cool, but it was just a great joint. I asked the girl who is helping me what other good restaurants are in DC and she gave me a bunch of ideas.

So Rachel and the other people working were really cool and really chill. I would definitely recommend checking this place out when you come to DC.

12/26/2016

Comet Ping Pong pizza is one of the best pizza places in the DC area.

It's a great place to hang out and have a good time. Ping Pong tables there are pretty awesome.

Don't read any fake news about this place, it's pretty legit.

12/10/2016

Ever since this place was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives family members visiting the area have wanted to eat here.
Made my 5th trip here today with a party of 6, including 2 kids.
Every time I visit and eat, I ponder why my opinion (I eat a lot of good pizza!) diverges so much with the other Yelpers who dine here.
The atmosphere in here is pretty loud. The seating is not terribly comfortable either, furniture is of that hipster-ish industrial/upcycled kinda vibe. The wall art is kinda weird, I never actually paid attention until recently but yeah, it's a bit strange I suppose.
The beer selection is solid, no complaints. Can't have pizza without good beer!
Never had the wings, but those in my group who had them said they were average to pretty good. They looked tasty.
So the pizza? The pizzas are small, but that's OK. Their signature pies are $13-15 each, roll your own ends up in the same price range once you add toppings.
Small and somewhat expensive, for what you're getting. I do not think this is a good value for the dollar.
They do cook in a wood-fired oven which lends, often, to a bit of inconsistency (which is fine, if you want identical every time, go to PizzatheHut).
Despite the wood-fired oven, my pizza ALWAYS ends up burned at the outer crust and soggy in the middle. I mean every single time. This disappoints me. Maybe if they rolled it just a bit thinner? I dunno, I am not a pizza-maker.
I want the same experience everyone else is describing and I am not getting it. Cognitive dissonance ... I wonder how many reviews here are real and how many are just people showing solidarity with the business after the recent craziness. That's OK, but my experience just never comes in at even A-OK, not on the price vs experience breakdown.
Final verdict - I have come here a few times and found it to be pretty average to mediocre.
DC has better pizza at a better pricepoint. Sorry. I tried to be a fan!!
* Full disclosure: I have brought my children and not once (NOT ONCE EVER!) did anyone try to abduct them and use them in occult rituals, so I don't think we have to worry about that. Just for the record.

12/5/2016

Fun and relaxed atmosphere--great to bring the kids here and let them play ping pong while the adults talk. Good friendly service. This is a great place to unwind after work if you live or work in or near DC.

The pizza is great too; I really like the texture of the crust, not too crunchy and not too soggy. Also, they have vegan "cheese" if you're vegan like my family. Lots of great choices for carnivores! :)

I wish the parking were a little better but it's DC, so you might want to uber there. Enjoy!

12/16/2016

We used to live a few blocks away, and we went here at least a dozen times. Since leaving Washington, D.C., I've visited again a couple of times. It's a family-friendly, casual neighborhood joint that serves good pizza and a decent selection of quality beers.

I just wanted to put in a good word, given the craziness of "fake news." Another name for that would be "lies."