The Journal
Friday, January 28, 2005
Alexandra Greeley

doughboys marches into Kentlands

Md. eatery's menu focuses on high-end pizzas and sandwiches



People of a certain age my think World War I and America's 82nd Division when they hear the name "doughboys." Others, particularly folks around the Kentlands area, will have an entirely different image.

They'll think "pizza" or "sandwiches," and celebrate a small, casual eatery named doughboys, with its focused menu - wood-fired pizzas, sandwiches and salads - and location in one of the development's main squares.

An ideal setting for parents with small kids - who, by the way, made up the bulk of the head count on a recent Sunday - doughboys really appeals to all folks who are looking for a quick and easy break in the day and don't want a heavy, cloying meal to weigh them down.

A friend and I headed in just as management opened for the day's business, and that may have accounted for the delay in getting our pizzas and sandwiches. The drill: Go up front to the counter and place your order. While there, linger awhile to watch the cook lift pizzas into the oven, then quickly snag a table before they're all taken.

We decided to share our orders, a sensible approach to having your pizza and eating it, too. Note that one pizza is really meant for two people, and one panini sandwich can easily double for lunch and dinner, or a dish to share.

We started with the Caesar salad, to which you can add chicken for an extra $2 and skirt steak or shrimp for an additional $3. Expecting the more traditional parmesan-vinegar-garlic-anchovy impact of this California icon, we were startled by the taste, imparted by a dressing that yielded a clean and citrusy flavor. Would a meaty topping have made the difference? It might have, but that would have turned a side salad into a main course, and we had all that pizza and panini to demolish.

Pizza choices - and I'm talking thin-crust pizzas, so if you're looking for a dense, doughy, chewy pie, you won't find it here - are somewhat trendy, reflecting America's passion for pizzas that go beyond tomato, cheese and meat toppings.

Consider the Pesto pizza topped with roasted shrimp, sun-dried tomatoes and Fontina cheese, or the slightly quircky Southwestern pizza with skirt steak, red onion, roasted red pepper, corn and pepper jack cheese.

More in the mood for chicken? There's a spicy chicken pizza with roasted red pepper, chili flakes and pepper jack cheese.

But fancy pizzas notwithstanding, my friend and I opted for the more commonplace: a quarto formaggi, know more familiarly as "four cheeses." One of these is Gorgonzola cheese, and you can put this on virtually anything, including ice cream, and I'd buy it. And for this pie, the cook could have had a more generous hand when sprinkling on the cheese, for the beloved Gorgonzola gets lost among the Fontina, mozzarella and provolone cheeses.

Our final main course choice was an almost-meaty sandwich, braised lamb served on foccacia with sides of chips and dollop of salad. Vegetarians can take heart. You'll find the usual cheese or portobello sandwiches, but something quite unusual: a fruit sandwich with banana, kiwi, strawberries and more.

Desserts include a banana bread pudding, tiramisu and the unusual black and white strawberry shortcake, a mousse-like dessert in a tall glass with two flavors of pudding and a swirl of whipped cream as the topping.