The Tualatin Commons is a poppin’ place, especially when it comes to dining locations. Bella Tu Pizza is a new Italian-based restaurant with a large assortment of pizzas as well as salads, danishes, specialty coffees and appetizers. 

This place has a very clean and simple atmosphere, which would make for a great studying/homework destination. This business was founded in 2001 and their main goal was to bring East Coast pizza back to Portland. This company supports many local organizations, such as Alberta Main Street, Raphael House, Basic Rights Oregon and Rock ‘n Roll Camp for Girls, and they provide donations to many neighborhood schools throughout the year. I got in contact with the owner of the store and asked about their new location and how they’ve been doing, especially throughout COVID-19.

How has COVID-19 affected your restaurant?

“We have two restaurants, one in Portland and one here [Tualatin]. We were greatly affected by the one in Portland, initially, because we’ve had that one longer. This one has still been affected by it. People are still trying to figure out whether they can dine in or not, but I think people are starting to realize that they can dine in, so that’s been interesting. We are also very open and welcoming, and we call it the ‘safe place’ for LGBTQ and POC, so that’s been a very big part of who we are. We are trying to reinvent the art of lingering. We want people to come in, realize that they are welcome to come in. We want people to bring their computers, so that’s been kind of an uphill battle just because people don’t realize that they’re welcome to stay. We are also starting up online orders, like Doordash.”

How did you end up in Tualatin?

“I don’t live very far away, and I love the Tualatin area. I’ve been to this area before, especially by the lake, and when we saw an opportunity to buy a restaurant here, I knew it was a perfect fit. The people are also super, super nice here. They’re lovely.”

How would you describe your restaurant to someone who’s never been there or heard about it?

“It’s basically a European cafe, meaning in the morning, you come in for your espressos and freshly made pastries. In the afternoon, we have handcrafted pizzas. Everything is made in-house, even our salad dressings, everything from scratch. It’s all locally sourced. We like to say, ‘a European flare with American sensibilities.’”

I decided to give some items on their menu a try, and here’s what I thought:

Garlic Knots: 8/10 – A little too toasted on the top for my liking, but had a good garlic flavor. Extra points for including marinara sauce. 

Caesar Salad: 9/10 – Simple, but had great flavor, and the croutons tasted super gourmet.

Sauvie Sunset: 8.6/10 – I loved the sauce on this pizza, and the drizzle of spicy honey was just the right balance of sweet, salty and spicy.

Overall, I would go back to Bella Tu Pizza, and I’m so glad they have a new location in Tualatin. It’s cool that they support so many local organizations, and it’s definitely worth a try!