Coal Fire Pizza - A Maryland Chain Expanding Into The DC Area Using (Sort Of) Coal Ovens

[Kibbee Nayee]

I guess we don't have enough pizza styles or options in Virginia, but I am legitimately interested in the new Coal Fire Pizza opening in the Rolling Valley Shopping Center this year. Coal Fire replaces a Japanese steak house on the slab adjacent to Anita's, and it will join Cedar Cafe, the credible suburban Tau Tau Americanized Chinese and a few other food options in that neck of the Burke area. I'm looking forward to some legitimate anthracite coal fired pizza around here.

[schulju]

I've been to the Coal Fire in Gaithersburg (Kentlands) several times.  It was better when it first opened, both the service and the quality have gone a bit downhill since then.  The pizza is okay, sometimes a bit too charred for my taste.  My favorite thing when the first opened was the Coal Fire salad.  Unfortunately, the quality of ingredients, especially the "house made" mozzarella (which they use to add for free and now charge for) has really gone down hill.  I haven't had their calamari in a while, but I recall it was very good the last time I tried it.  

[Lydia R]

I've been to the Coal Fire in Gaithersburg (Kentlands) several times.  It was better when it first opened, both the service and the quality have gone a bit downhill since then.  The pizza is okay, sometimes a bit too charred for my taste.  My favorite thing when the first opened was the Coal Fire salad.  Unfortunately, the quality of ingredients, especially the "house made" mozzarella (which they use to add for free and now charge for) has really gone down hill.  I haven't had their calamari in a while, but I recall it was very good the last time I tried it.  

Yikes, sorry to hear the quality didn't survive the expansion. CoalFire's original thread is in the Baltimore folder.

[DonRocks]

Yikes, sorry to hear the quality didn't survive the expansion. CoalFire's original thread is in the Baltimore folder. 

Are they actually using real coal?

[Kibbee Nayee]

Are they actually using real coal?

Says here it's anthracite....

[Lydia R]

Are they actually using real coal?

Says here it's anthracite....

Well, technically sort-a:

<snip>
After asking our server too many questions [sorry, we didn't know it was her first day], one of the owners did a drop-by, chatted with us about their 18-month pizza research and told us their oven is from Bellingham Washington. This oven uses coal, gas and electric/convection to keep the temp controlled and the flat surface hot.
<snip>

During this first conversation, a co-owner noted that this oven had the ability to use "coal for show" and have lower-skilled "teenage kids" on the line (because there's less skill involved in keeping the primarily gas/electric convection driven ovens going). He was all product and price-points - it was the other co-owner who loved the pie. The weblink to the oven manufactuer is broken -- Woodstone now has five hybrid ovens - here's the fanciest.

[MsDiPesto]

He was all product and price-points -

A frequent reason for the eventual downfall of places that have a good start.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

For whatever it's worth, I go to the Frederick location periodically and haven't noticed any change in the quality of the pizza or other food there since it opened. I'd been to the Kentlands location a few times prior as well, seems the same to me as that.

Maybe the quality had already started to decline by the time I started eating there? Or maybe I just haven't noticed the change or haven't ordered the right things. :I

[lonewolfcub]

This is now open. I think it's been open for two weeks now. We ordered a large white pizza, and a batch of their wings. The wings are cooked in their oven, so they are not fried. Nor are they sauced with any type of dressing so it's not buffalo wings. They are served with carmelized onions. Wife and I didn't really enjoy the wings. Bland/dry, and the onions were tasteless IMO.

The pizza was solid. The crust has a good chew. It's not a cracker type crust, and it wasn't soggy either.

I'll go back to try a different pie. I felt their pasta's looked a tad over priced.

[Pool Boy]

I've been to the Columbia, MD location several times over the past few years. They were really good right at the start, but quality went downhill quickly. Not horrible, just not nearly as good as when they opened. It's still fine but I haven't been in a year or so. I find their 'signature' sauce just way, way too sweet for me.

[drsmoke]

Tried the Frederick location recently. Easily as good as Pizza Hut or Papa John's, in other words, totally awful.