Located in the Shooks Run part of downtown, Stellina Pizza serves Roman-style pies known for their hand-stretched, rectangular shape and flavorful dough. Utilizing many of the same fixtures found in during their construction, it has a feel of both nuanced old and brilliant new.
Sarah Mishler is the Chief Strategy Officer at Blue Star Restaurant Group which includes Stellina Pizza remakrs, “This building was bought by the owners a couple years ago before we envisioned a project to the space. It’s been a commercial space since 1902 and a neighborhood gem. We knew we needed to do something special with the space.”
In the midst of construction January of 2020, they were on track to open in April. Not imagining or building a business for take-out and delivery, Stellina had to rethink how to set up our operations. Their ongoing question – How can we keep people safe and healthy when we expected mostly dine in?
They pushed opening to mid May 2020 for just take out as they have a large beautiful window allowing for safe take out. Listening to their team members and desiring safety for the community, Stellina took a very cautious approach to reopening. Just now opening for dine-in, and it really helped staff and patrons feel comfortable with the varied transitions.
The menu is clean and simple ingredients. You can find menu items like warm caprese, burrata, rocket salad (arugula, gorgonzola, sliced zucchini, pine nuts in a lemon vinaigrette) as starters plus pasta like pesto spaghetti and polpetta & mozzarella. The real star of the show are their gorgeous pizzas with items like their Classic or Rosa or more intricate like their Dar Poeta – mozzarella, parmigiano reggiano aged 24 months, artisanal spicy Italian sausage, sliced zucchini.
Sarah also comments on the beauty of the historical space. “There are so many treasures in this space. There is so much rich history and we want to maintain this as a beautiful spot for our customers.” Blue Star Restaurant Group took the year of the pivot to spend time to hibernate some restaurants and defines their hospitality as ‘radical hospitality.’ They desire their teams to own the space and guests to enjoy their experience.
Website: stellinapizza.com
Social: @stellinapizza
Meet the Photographer
Lauren Wallace
Lauren spent most of her adult life traveling around the globe before making Colorado Springs her home. She is passionate about people, photography, adventure and her faith. She also enjoys lists, strong coffee, good cocktails, exploring new places, and getting to share those experiences with both old and new friends.
She has always loved supporting local and investing in my local community. She never envisioned herself owning my own small business! She took a business course with the SBDC and was able to get her photo business up and running. And now she’s living that small business dream!
Website: https://photobylaurenwallace.com
Social: @photobylaurenwallace & @coslocaladventures
