In the summer of 2003, Chef Ed Hanson opened a pizzeria on the western edge of a neighborhood that had just renamed itself Penn Quarter. Four years later, Ella’s Wood Fired Pizza, named for Hanson’s young daughter, remains a rarity in downtown Washington: it is an independently owned–and not the least bit pretentious–place to enjoy a drink and a bite to eat. Located at 901 F Street, Ella’s features neither a unifying decorative theme (Matchbox) nor a specialty martini list (just about every other establishment in a six block radius). Its happy hour is an early one, running from 4 to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Ella’s pizza recently was voted Best in Washington by the 2007 AOL City Guide to D.C., beating out such notables as Pizzeria Paradiso and Two Amys. During happy hour, seven-inch pies of this award-winning pizza sell for just $5. Suffice to say that this reviewer does not agree with the AOL City Guide. Ella’s happy hour pies seem almost utilitarian: Mere dollops of mozzarella decorate a circle of tomato sauce. The cubed sausage adds some flavor, but accomplishes little that a few dashes of pepper wouldn’t accomplish. The cheese pizza arrives as a pool of red dotted by a few stingy islands of cheese. To its credit, Ella’s offers no less than 8 different kinds of pizza during its happy hour, and, taste being a matter of, well, taste, you very well may find one to your liking; perhaps you work for the AOL City Guide. At the very least, there is ample food to soak up house-made sangria, offered for $3.50 a glass and $15 for a carafe.