A Wood-Fired Newcomer Secures Space on Pizza-Abundant Melrose

The Melrose dining corridor between Fairfax and La Brea is shaping up to be an even bigger heavy-hitter for pizza, especially now that newcomer LN2 Pizza Shoppe is on the scene.

LN2 is the first venture for husband and wife owners Mica Ray and chef Christopher Robbins. Robbins has a resume that places him mostly throughout corporate kitchens over the years. As for the name, the owners took inspiration from the chemical symbol for liquid nitrogen, hence LN2. Though wood-fired pizza rules the menu, the owners are doing liquid nitrogen ice cream dishes and cocktails for a theatric touch.

The pies at LN2 range from margherita to one a duck confit option, along with salads, small plates and pan-LA options like a banh mi, a Cubano sandwich, black cod, and a crispy chicken sandwich.

The new LN2 takes over the defunct Napoleon and Josephine, which closed in 2017. The couple took one year to transform the former colorful Corsican restaurant into a white-tiled open space. Diners can watch the pizza-production process from anywhere in the dining room, which seats approximately 80 across 2,500 square feet. The outdoor patio has a retractable roof.

It’s an ambitious step for this Fairfax neighborhood, with popular contenders like Lucifer’s, Blackbird Pizza Shop, and Tomato Pie nearby, and that’s to say nothing of Pizzeria Mozza and Ronan. Competition is fierce, as Pizza Romana closed only one week ago.

LN2 is closed Mondays, and serves lunch Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and dinner 5 p.m. until 11 p.m. On Friday and Saturday, LN2 is open from 5 p.m. until midnight.

LN2. 7212 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles CA.

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Tom Keller Photography