I’m just gonna cut to the chase. Harrisonburg has needed a wood-fired pizza place FOREVER. And we finally have one!! And it’s AWESOME. And beautiful, as you can see from Brandy’s photos here.

Brandy and I had a lovely day with the kids recently. We planned to meet at Bella Luna for lunch. Of course, when we got there, we discovered that Shabby Love, a new store with all kinds of cool vintage items located next to Bella Luna, is also now open! We went in there first and pretty much drooled over every single item in that place. So you can expect to see some gorgeous photos of that place soon, too.

If you haven’t been in Bella Luna yet, let me set the scene for you. It’s located on West Water Street just down from Beyond and Cuban Burger. They’ve done a superb job of renovating that building: a bright atrium behind majestic wooden doors greets hungry patrons; beautiful exposed brick preserves the building’s history; tall windows let in exorbitant natural light; a warm, welcoming bar lines one side of the restaurant; wooden columns and rafters explain why they won a well-deserved Design Excellence Award; and the kitchen, including the shiny, modern wood-fire oven, is open and visible from the dining area. It’s pretty fancy, in an unassuming way, for a pizza joint. But the menu has something for everyone, no matter how sophisticated their taste.

I can’t say enough about how happy and positive and accommodating the staff is. There’s not a bad seat in the place, but for the purpose of photography, we asked to be moved to a seat near the window with brighter light. The hostess didn’t even flinch and just moved us over. Once settled in our seats, our waitress came right over. Of course, before she could get two words out, Cal challenged her to a staring contest, and because she was the nicest server I think I’ve ever had, she happily obliged. She also lost the contest, but she didn’t hold it against him. In fact, a bit later, she was kind enough to take Bree and Cal over to the pizza oven for a tour. They loved that.

We stuck to pizza, beer, and an appetizer. Our appetizer was this lovely deviled egg dish with fresh, local greens and prosciutto ham and some kind of yummy dressing. When the server brought over the pepper mill, Cal asked, “Is that a chess piece?”

Bree and Cal split a cheese pizza, and Brandy and I devoured a more meaty variety, every single bite, plus finger licking. Bree quickly exclaimed that it was the best pizza she’d ever had, adding that she loved the lightly charred edges (she’s not usually a fan of charred food at my house) and that “we are definitely coming back here.” Cal didn’t say much. He just stuffed it in.

We were so comfortable in there I feel like we’d hardly waited at all before the food arrived. But we ate leisurely, knowing we didn’t have to be anywhere else immediately and enjoying the time to sit, sip, chat, and get nourished. I mention this because if you happen to work downtown, you should know that it’s entirely feasible to get a meal during your lunch break. If you’re not pressed for time, it’s a lovely environment in which to take your time, enjoy a bottle of wine, and relax.

I’ll just let the photos tell the rest of the story. You should, right now, look at your calendar and plan a trip to Bella Luna. We’ve waited this long for wood-fired pizza; to wait any longer would just be ridiculous. See you out and about!

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