Everything has already been written about Gjelina. The delicacy of their mozzarella and orange-tinted cherry tomatoes pizza, its refined decor, the necessity to book ahead in order to avoid the line on a Saturday lunch, their gnocchi with brown butter and truffle honey, the staff’s hotness despite their lack of friendliness, their ricotta pancakes which sell out faster than a Rolling Stones concert… We won’t repeat what everyone is already saying, so we will simply give you a set of tips: 1. Book a table for brunch in the patio – you do not want to compromise on the patio. 2. Order pizzas, especially the butternut squash pizza or the guanciale one, if they are available that day. You can skip the salads, order more pizzas. Get a few mushroom toasts for the table, it’s perfect while you wait for your pizza and you won’t find this dish anywhere else, not even at Gjusta. 3. Gjelina is a Venice Beach icon, but the vegetarian sandwich at Gjelina Take Away (right next door) or the fish plate at Gjusta (near the Google offices) are the rising stars which deserve all your attention, if not more…
Style: Californian / Italian
Address: 1429 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, CA 90291 (Venice)
Hours: Monday-Sunday, 8-12AM
Menu: gjelina.com
Price: Pizzas $13-16, Salads 13-15, Entrees $16-34
Reservations: (310) 450-1429 or OpenTable