PMQ Pizza Magazine April 2018

April 2018

PIZZA MAGAZINE THE WORLD'S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA | PMQ.COM | PIZZATV.COM

PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | Volume 22, Issue 3

April 2018

THE The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly | PMQ.com

UPPER CRUST Mobile Catering 54

April2018cover.indd 1

John Arena: 8 Uses for Olive Oil 64

One of Miami’s culinary power couples, Anita and Klime Kovaceski make pizza success seem effortless — but the devil’s in the details.

PAGE 36

The Pizza Hall of Fame Turns 10! 98

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FIND US ONLINE

AS SEEN ON PIZZATV.COM HOW TO MAKE A GLUTEN-FREE NEAPOLITAN-STYLE PIZZA Developing a gluten-free crust for wood-fired Neapolitanstyle pizza has gotten a lot easier, thanks to Caputo’s Fiore Glut. Michele D’Amelio of Orlando Foods shows PMQ’s Brian Hernandez how to use this gluten-free mix and Ciao tomatoes to make a Neapolitan-style pie that tastes like Neapolitan should taste. As a bonus, D’Amelio whips up a Detroit-style pie with the same mix!

P I Z Z AT V. CO M /C A P U T O G LU T E N F R E E

EXCLUSIVELY ON PMQ.COM

PINK FLAMINGO PIZZA FLOATS A COOL IDEA

MEANWHILE, BACK AT RANCH PIZZA…

Pink Flamingo Pizza knows we never outgrow our love for balloons. In a nifty little marketing move, the Parisian pizzeria uses logoed hot-pink balloons to spread its brand and appeal to the inner child in every customer.

Richard Corey doesn’t call his restaurant Ranch Pizza for nothing. Corey has fully embraced the ranch-on-pizza craze and built his business model around smothering slices with the housemade dressing.

P M Q . CO M / P I N K F L A M I N G O

DIFFERENT GENERATIONS REQUIRE DIFFERENT MARKETING TACTICS

P M Q . CO M / R A N C H P I Z Z A

PIZZA HUT IS NEW NFL SPONSOR

A recent survey shows many marketers are frequently off-base when it comes to knowing what matters to different generations of consumers. From direct mail and email to marketing to centennials (ages 18 to 21), you may be surprised by the survey’s findings.

One day after Papa John’s announced it had dropped its National Football League sponsorship, Pizza Hut took over their spot. Political controversy has swirled around both Papa John’s and the NFL, but Pizza Hut thinks football is a perfect fit as the chain tries to stay ahead of Domino’s.

P M Q . CO M /G E N E R AT I O N A L M A R KE T I N G

P M Q . CO M / N F L S P O N S O R

6 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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IN THIS ISSUE

APRIL FEATURES ON T COV HE ER

36 MICHAEL PR ICE

The owners of Crust in Miami have made their meteoric rise appear effortless in the way that only the truly talented (and detailobsessed) can.

GARLIC JIM’S

By Tracy Morin

JE FF GREE N

Gluten-Free 46 The Gold Mine

JEFF GREE

Catering Has 54 Mobile All the Right Moves

Arena’s 64 John Olive Oil Tips

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IN THIS ISSUE

32 What’s Your Story?

Papa’s Pizza As hurricane recovery drags on, people have been leaving Puerto Rico in droves. But Wilhelm Rodriguez is staying put so he can provide jobs and feed the hungry.

By Daniel Lee Perea

In Lehmann’s Terms: The Three Common Causes of Soggy Pizza

16

PMQ . CO M/D O UG H

Think Tank: Drive New-Store Traffic

5 Keys to Facebook Success

18 20

Pizza Without Borders: The Unstoppable Juan

The Chef’s Corner: Will Grant

22

Celebrating 10 Years of the Pizza Hall of Fame

72

98

IN EVERY ISSUE 6 12 14 24 26

Online @ PMQ.com From the Editor From the Inbox The Art of Marketing Moneymakers

30 74 78 80 82

Recipe of the Month SmartMarket PMQ Idea Zone Product Spotlight The Pizza Exchange

Check out our digital and tablet editions for bonus video and multimedia content.

Visit PMQ.com/digital to view the digital edition, or download our tablet app at iTunes, Google Play and Amazon.com.

10 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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FROM THE EDITOR

PIZZA MARKETING AND THE CULTURE OF OUTRAGE Making people laugh is a tricky business. It can even be risky, as any class smart-aleck who cracked the wrong joke about the wrong kid in elementary school will tell you. I should know—I was that class smart-aleck. Not so much a clown, just a smartaleck. Clowns can get away with a lot more than smart-alecks.

Trust me on that one.

Brad Breakell, owner of Pizzalchik in Boise, Idaho, is a guy who likes to make people laugh and uses his off-the-wall sense of humor to sell pizza. But he has learned the hard way to tread carefully in today’s culture of outrage.

Breakell has created a pantheon of goofy characters for his intentionally corny “Fireside Menu Chat” videos, in which he introduces his weekly specials. Judging by views, likes and shares, his customers love them. A Valentine’s Day video—featuring Breakell as a bizarrely clad Cupid with an awful French accent—garnered more than 4,000 views. Other characters include Amelia Child (a squeaky-voiced cross between Amelia Earhart and Julia Child) and Idiotic Jones (exhausted after his recent escape from the Temple of Doom).

He sings, he dances, he cracks awful jokes and peddles pies, pastas and soups. But, harmless as Breakell’s hokey humor may appear to most, he has twice managed to incite outrage with his characters. As Billy Burrito, denounced by some as a racist stereotype of a Mexican, he donned a sombrero and

Rick Hynum Editor in Chief

poncho and smeared his face with brownish makeup. Another character, Jacklyn Jaws, tied into Shark Week, but Breakell’s darkened skin—meant to create a visual contrast with an allwhite cardboard cutout of a shark’s head—struck many as a blackface gag.

Breakell has strongly denied any racist intent and released an apology video after the Jacklyn Jaws debacle. Even so, the Huffington Post has called him out twice, generating ugly publicity for a family-friendly pizza shop with a peace-and-love hippie vibe. Meanwhile, local media—print and TV—have also shone a harsh spotlight on Pizzalchik. Chastised but unbowed, Breakell keeps putting out videos, developing new oddball characters and pushing his weekly specials.

Breakell isn’t the first restaurateur to wander into the minefield of political correctness while shooting for laughs.

As a marketer, he has the right idea, using video, social media and his own quirky personality to distinguish his brand and connect with his customers authentically. But his errors of judgment and media travails remind us that humor as a marketing strategy can be a double-edged sword, intent doesn’t necessarily matter, and noisy outrage trumps civil discourse every time. As a kid, I paid the price for my so-called wit with a fat lip or two. For a restaurant owner with a livelihood to think about, the penalty could be far worse.

PIZZA MAGAZINE THE WOR LD'S AU THOR ITY ON P IZ Z A | P MQ.COM | P IZ Z ATV.COM

April 2018

ON THE COVER: As owners of Crust, Klime and Anita Kovaceski have become a preeminent power couple in Miami’s thriving restaurant scene. Photo by Michael Price

THE

UPPER CRUST Mobile Catering 54

A Publication of PMQ, Inc. 662-234-5481 Volume 22, Issue 3 April 2018 ISSN 1937-5263 Publisher Steve Green, sg@pmq.com ext. 123 Co-Publisher Linda Green, linda.pmq@gmail com ext. 121 Editor in Chief Rick Hynum, rick@pmq.com Editor at Large Liz Barrett, liz@pmq.com Senior Copy Editor Tracy Morin, tracy@pmq.com International Correspondent Missy Green, missy@pmq.com

John Arena: 8 Uses for Olive Oil 64

One of Miami’s culinary power couples, Anita and Klime Kovaceski make pizza success seem effortless — but the devil’s in the details.

PAGE 36

The Pizza Hall of Fame Turns 10! 98

Art Director Eric Summers, eric@pmq.com ext. 134

Test Chef/Event Coordinator Brian Hernandez, brian@pmq.com ext. 129

Creative Director Sarah Beth Wiley, sarahbeth@pmq.com ext. 135

Special Events Caroline Felker, caroline@pmq.com ext. 140

Senior Media Producer Daniel Lee Perea, dperea@pmq.com ext. 139

ADVERTISING

IT Director Aaron Harris, aaron@pmq.com ext. 133 Video Editor Blake Harris, blake@pmq.com ext. 136 Social Media Manager Heather Cray, heather@pmq.com ext. 137 Chief Financial Officer Shawn Brown, shawn@pmq.com Circulation Manager Sherlyn Clark, sherlyn@pmq.com ext. 120

Sales Director Linda Green, linda@pmq.com ext. 121 Senior Account Executive Tom Boyles, tom@pmq.com ext. 122

PMQ INTERNATIONAL PMQ China Yvonne Liu, yvonne@pmq.com PMQ Russia Vladimir Davydov, vladimir@pmq.com PMQ Pizza Magazine 605 Edison St. • Oxford, MS 38655 662.234.5481 • 662.234.0665 Fax

Sales Assistant Brandy Pinion, brandy@pmq.com ext. 127 PMQ Pizza Magazine (ISSN #1937-5263) is published 10 times per year.

Cost of U.S. subscription is $25 per year. International $35. Periodical postage pricing paid at Oxford, MS. Additional mailing offices at Bolingbrook, IL. Postmaster: Send address changes to: PMQ Pizza Magazine, PO Box 2015, Langhorne, PA 19047.

Opinions expressed by the editors and contributing writers are strictly their own, and are not necessarily those of the advertisers. All rights reserved. No portion of PMQ may be reproduced in whole or part without written consent.

12 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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CO U RTESY DANIEL B R U Z Z INI

A TRIBUTE TO PAPA WAPA JOE Like most foods, I was introduced to Wa-Pa-Ghetti’s pizza by my mom, Nancy. Stationed in Germany, I was serving in the Air Force as a neonatologist (baby ICU doctor). Every other month, a service member’s baby would need advanced care, such as heart surgery. My team and I would fly the family and their critically ill baby to the United States for treatment. On the way back, I was often routed through O’Hare International Airport. My mom knew I sorely missed Chicago-style pizza so, during my layover, we would go to Wa-Pa-Ghetti’s in Wheeling, Illinois. Owner Joe Mastro, known as “Papa Wapa Joe,” served his pies with a bright smile, a joke and a story of the day’s news.

I never had a bad pizza, because he uses the best ingredients and takes the time to ensure a great crust is made, allowed to rise, and baked just right. In America, everyone is free to pursue happiness, to dream, and to work hard to make their dream come true. Papa Wapa Joe’s dream keeps him working all but four days a year (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s and Easter), bringing happiness to others, one delicious deep-dish pizza at a time. Like any small business owner, he will tell you it isn’t easy, but sharing his talent for pizza making with local schoolchildren, hosting and catering parties, raising funds for charities, and even serving a slice of home to a slightly tired and bedraggled military physician returning to duty make it all worthwhile. I, for one, am grateful and look forward to a slice of home whenever I’m in Wheeling—the result of a good man’s dream and strong work ethic. Vielen dank, grazie mille and thank you very much, Papa Wapa Joe! Col. (retired) Daniel B. Bruzzini, MD Webster Groves, MO There’s a new pizza shop on our bucket list, thanks to you, Col. Bruzzini.

Thank you for your service to our country and for telling us about Wa-PaGhetti’s. We can’t wait to meet Papa Wapa Joe in person!

D ESIGN BY H EATH ER C R AY

FROM THE INBOX

“PASSION NEVER FAILS” I operated a pizzeria but had to close it due to the partnership not going as planned. It was in business for seven years. Now I sell pizza on my own at farmers markets and other events here and there. My customers follow me and always want to invest in a new location. It’s an amazing feeling! Anyway, I just wanted to say that your Facebook posts always inspire me to not give up, especially the one you posted recently featuring Dan Uccello. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Janet Duran Laredo, TX Via Facebook That’s good to hear, Janet. Our social media director, Heather Cray, creates those inspirational posts, and we love them, too!

STUFF WE LOVE

At Sofia Wine Bar in New York, Nutella-based desserts are out of the question—it’s a nut-free environment. So co-owner Thomas DeGrezia came up with a dessert item like none other: a pizza using dough made with Italian cocoa and melted Baker’s chocolate, with adjusted levels of flour and olive oil. As Arthur Bovino reports in his Best Pizza NYC blog, the dough “moves, pulls, thins and feels like your typical New York dough. It’s just dark brown and exudes the deep, musky sweetness of chocolate.”

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IN LEHMANN’S TERMS

THE THREE COMMON CAUSES OF SOGGY PIZZA If your pizza crust won’t stay crispy after it’s baked, keep these tips in mind to better control moisture.

By Tom Lehmann

Q A

Our pizzas become soggy soon after baking, and our delivery and carryout customers have been complaining.

What can we do to get a consistently crispier pizza?

This is one of those questions that I get a lot. Pizza can become soggy shortly after baking for any number of reasons, but let’s discuss the three most likely causes.

Failure to allow the pizza to “steam off ” after baking is probably the most common reason for loss of crispiness.

Immediately upon removing the pizza from the oven, you’ll want to place it on a wire cooling rack or a pizza screen.

This will allow the steam to escape from the pizza rather than letting it get forced back into the crust, which is what will make it lose its crisp. Leave it on the rack for about 30 seconds to one minute at most.

Pizza can also lose its crispiness if it’s baked at an excessively high temperature. In this case, the pizza’s crust will have only a very thin layer of crispiness; once this thin layer absorbs moisture, its crisp is quickly diminished or lost completely. That’s why pizzas that are baked quickly in a very hot oven are fine for dine-in but tend to become soft and soggy in a delivery-carryout (DELCO) application.

Boxing a DELCO pizza holds in all that steam for an extended period of time, leading to a softer, soggier pizza.

The problem gets worse when the box is placed in an insulated delivery bag!

The third most common reason for a soggy pizza is the use of too much sugar in the dough formulation. Excess sugar impacts the pizza’s retention of crispiness in a number of ways. First, it yields a crust that colors faster, resulting in a shorter baking time, which definitely impacts crispiness. Then there’s the problem of residual sugar in the crust, especially in the browned portion, where the sugar becomes concentrated due to the lower moisture content. In this case, the sugar, being hygroscopic (meaning it absorbs or attracts moisture from the air), readily pulls moisture from both the inner crumb portion of the crust as well as the environment around the crust—which is highly moisture-laden immediately after baking—resulting in, once again, a loss of crispiness!

Tom Lehmann was the longtime director of bakery assistance for the American Institute of Baking (AIB) and is now a pizza industry consultant.

PMQ . CO M/D O UG H

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THE THINK TANK

HOW TO DRIVE MORE TRAFFIC TO A NEWER STORE The first three years in business are usually bumpy, Think Tankers say, but as long as your sales keep going up, don’t push the panic button.

Jessica Miller: We’ve been open for a little more than three years.

Our customer feedback is amazing, including 4.9 stars on Facebook.

We’re doing great on Google and Yelp, too. We’ve also done directdoor marketing, giveaways and Facebook ads. We’ve gotten involved with the community. And yet we’re still struggling. This is a town full of residential neighborhoods, with a lot of places to eat—such as McDonald’s and Taco Bell—but no direct pizza competition. We aren’t on the main strip, so I fear our location is the problem. We’ve cut our food costs and work seven days a week, but we still struggle to make it. Help! Any marketing ideas?

the entire day. We are four years in now, though, and as long as sales are still trending in the right direction, I’m happy. When starting out, the best ROI for me was Facebook advertising.

Once I started spending $20 a week on Facebook, I started getting more traffic. We did some postcard mailers, too, but those were really expensive and actually worked too well! On the weekend after they went out, we would get swamped and didn’t have the staff to handle it. Then, within a week or two, that extra boost in sales would be gone and we’d be pretty much back to square one.

RobT: Go back and check your yearly sales since you opened. If

JTMiller09: Here are a few ideas to help you drive traffic to your

they’re going up year over year, just sit tight. I remember that years one to three were a challenge for me. I started seeing better numbers after year four. Also, check your food costs again and make sure nothing is out of whack.

store: 1) Develop a marketing calendar. It’s your road map so that you don’t get lost. 2) Take free pizzas to five businesses in your area every week. 3) If there are hotels nearby, pay the desk clerks in gift certificates for referrals/sales. 4) Provide bounceback offers to local dry cleaners, oil change businesses and full-service car washes. 5) Partner with the local schools in any way possible!

Mondo: I agree with RobT. As long as your sales are still

increasing each year, hold tight. The beginning is a grind.

When we started, we sometimes wouldn’t even do $100 for

Get answers to your most perplexing problems and swap tips and ideas with the experts in PMQ’s Think Tank, the pizza industry’s oldest and most popular online forum. Register for free at thinktank.pmq.com. (Member posts have been edited here for clarity.)

T HI N KTAN K.P M Q.COM

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THE SOCIAL CONNECTION

THE 5 KEYS TO FACEBOOK SUCCESS Daily posts, boosted ads and video are essential to building an engaged fan base on the world’s largest social media platform. | By Christopher Wick/SMM International Facebook is a pizzeria marketer’s dream come true. True, it’s not exactly free advertising anymore—Facebook is a for-profit company just like yours, and they give you better results when you spend some money with them. But there’s no better way to reach hundreds or even thousands of potential customers.

With that in mind, here are five things you must do to achieve success on Facebook:

1

POST EVERY SINGLE DAY!

The first and most crucial factor in Facebook success is to post daily. That is a must, and you need to do it during peak hours. Consistency and good timing are vital to keeping your social media effort moving in the right direction. Beyond that, your content should either be original—created in-house specifically for your followers—or high-quality shared content that is at least somewhat related to your business. Remember, the most important thing in marketing and advertising is consistency. Be consistent in your posting, and it will lead to a great relationship with your brand’s fans.

2

SPEND SOME MONEY.

Yes, you need to advertise on Facebook, and that means creating a budget for ads so that your posts and content

will be seen. Organic reach is not doing well these days due to Facebook’s picky algorithms. Fortunately, social media advertising is cheap, and it can have a powerful impact on your business if it’s done right. We recommend boosting your posts for $1 a day to start and then work your way up to bigger spends. Make sure to measure your results and pay attention to what gets the best response. But don’t just boost weekly specials or “buy our pizza” messages. Make sure to boost your most engaging content!

3

SHARE YOUR SUCCESS.

Never be shy about sharing your success stories, accomplishments and milestones. Your audience wants to hear about them and feel uplifted by the work you do. If your pizza wins an award, let the Facebook community know about it. If your fundraiser generates a lot of money for a good

The first and most crucial factor in Facebook success is to post daily.

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cause, spread the word. And boosting a post about your latest accomplishment—especially a culinary or civic award your pizzeria won—is always a good idea.

4

USE VIDEO TO ENGAGE YOUR AUDIENCE.

Facebook users these days are wired to watch interactive content. They will engage with videos four times more than with static images! Share visually appealing video content with your followers—such as behind-the-scenes glimpses of your team at work and warm or funny moments with your customers—and you’ll see your engagement skyrocket. Do this as often as you can. Commit to making and sharing one video per week!

5

CREATE CONTESTS FOR YOUR FANS.

I cannot emphasize this enough: What you want in your social media campaign is engagement. You need those likes, comments, shares and clicks. The more engagement you have, the more followers you will gain—and the more pizza you will sell! Aside from video, what is the best way to engage your followers? Contests! That is the No. 1 strategy for attracting new customers. Use Facebook contests to give away free food or gift cards. Be creative, have some fun with it, and you will convert followers to customers!

Christopher Wick is the founder of SMM International, an award-winning social media marketing agency that’s helped over 100 businesses in the pizza industry. Visit smminternational.com or call 888-SMM-INTL to sign up for a free social media strategy session!

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE CHEF’S CORNER

ut re abo rn mo To lea ’s pizzeria, a in izz Grant and p h pies k out Brian g u o d sour , chec h Q&A at ington pt Wash ez’s in-de lks. d a n Herna q.com/willt pm

WILL GRANT | T H A T ’ S

A SOME PIZZA

The winner of the 2017 Caputo Cup shares his championship recipe as well as the history of his family’s historic sourdough starter. | By Brian Hernandez Seattle is best known for its rainy days, the Space Needle, and being the birthplace of grunge music and Starbucks. But it also has some great pizza, thanks to pizzeria operators like Will Grant of That’s A Some Pizza (pronounced as you’d expect, with a little Italian flair) on Bainbridge Island, Washington.

Grant, winner of the 2017 Caputo Cup in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and his family have been working in the pizza and restaurant business ever since he was a self-described wild child in the 1980s. But they’ve put their own historic twist on their recipes, acting as caretakers for one of the world’s oldest sourdough starters.

When the Klondike in northwestern Canada became a gold rush area in the 1890s, the rule for speculators was that they needed to have enough food for a year due to the harsh conditions. Because the Yukon territory is too cold to grow food, you basically had to pack in all your provisions. The best solution was a starter, so you would always be able to make bread. Miners would actually sleep with their starters to keep it warm, alive and active.

With its own 120-year old sourdough starter from the Klondike gold rush era, That’s A Some Pizza has been creating sourdough pizzas since 1984. Grant was kind enough to share the recipe for his Caputo Cup-winning pie with us, so let’s dive right in before it gets cold. (You like that? An Alaska joke.)

But first, a few words of wisdom from our featured pizzaiolo: “ You have to always be hiring. You can’t not be hiring. You can’t not be training. You have always got to be working with and on someone. You have to inspire them. A lot of people in the industry started in a pizzeria or something similar, and they don’t always take it too seriously. To them, it’s a side job. But I am trying to make a bunch of copies of me to run these stores, so I have to push them, give them direction and goals to keep them focused. As I said, no one will care as much as you do about your shop. Make them care.” —Will Grant

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CAPUTO CUP-WINNING RECIPE: THE GORGONZOLA VEGETARIAN DOUGH

DIRECTIONS

80 oz. high-gluten flour 48 oz. cold water 32 oz. sourdough starter 2.4 oz. honey 2 oz. salt 1.6 oz. canola oil

Creating a Sourdough Starter

GORGONZOLA SAUCE 1 lb. Gorgonzola cheese (use blue cheese if Gorgonzola isn’t available) .56 qt. (18.12 fl. oz.) buttermilk

• Combine ¾ c. flour and ½ c. warm water in a glass or plastic container. Make sure the container can hold about 2 quarts to avoid overflow. Stir vigorously to incorporate air; cover with a breathable lid.

• Leave in a warm place at 70-85°F for 12 to 24 hours.

Feeding every 12 hours will increase the rate at which your sourdough starter’s organisms multiply; feeding every 24 hours will take a bit longer, but it may be more sustainable, depending on your time commitment.

.6 tsp. Lawry’s seasoned salt

• At the 12- or 24-hour mark, you may begin to see some bubbles, indicating that organisms are present. Repeat the feeding with ½ c. warm water and ¾ c. flour. Stir vigorously, cover, and wait another 12 to 24 hours.

Repeat feedings every 12 to 24 hours by removing half of the starter before every feeding and discarding it. Feed with ½ c. warm water and ¾ c. flour.

Mix the first three ingredients.

Add the remaining ingredients.

• After about 5 to 7 days, the sourdough starter should have enough yeasts and bacteria to be used for baking.

INGREDIENTS

Mix all ingredients and allow to cold ferment for 72 hours.

After fermenting, roll out onto a 16” pizza screen and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

8 oz. sour cream 3 c. mayonnaise 1 tbsp. minced garlic (not granulated) 1 tsp. black pepper

25-oz. sourdough dough ball (for a 16” pizza)

7 oz. mozzarella-provolone blend (80-20 ratio)

Add Gorgonzola sauce and the mozzarella-provolone blend. Spread the mushrooms evenly on the pie and top with red onion slices. Evenly sprinkle pie with the pine nuts and minced garlic. Bake the pie for 7 minutes at 530° (in a deck oven) until crust is golden-brown.

1 c. button mushrooms, sliced lengthwise

After the bake, cut the pie and add finely crumbled feta.

Cover and let the feta melt into pie. Serve and enjoy!

4 oz. Gorgonzola sauce (see recipe above)

²/³ c. red onions, sliced in semicircles 2 tbsp. pine nuts 1 tbsp. minced garlic ²/³ c. feta cheese, finely crumbled

Brian Hernandez, a longtime pizzaiolo, is PMQ’s test chef, U.S. Pizza Team event coordinator and a host on PizzaTV.

R E L AT E D V I D E O B R IA N H ER N A N D E Z WA L K S YOU T H RO UG H T H E ST E P S OF M A K I N G T H IS AWA R D -WINN I N G P I E AT PMQ . CO M/WILLG R A N T

That’s it, pizza people, the award-wwinning Gorgonzola Vegetarian pie from That’s A Some Pizza in Bainbridge Island, Washington! Please check out the online interview with owner and champion Will Grant for more information about That’s A Some Pizza, sourdough pies and Washington pizza in general at pmq.com/willtalks.

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE ART OF MARKETING

Looking for more marketing ideas and insights? PMQ has you covered!

Liz Barrett Foster Editor at Large

April 2018 Top Marketing Tips & Tricks RING IN THE SPRING! Spring is a time of renewal, so why not provide your customers with a fun place to shake off their winter blues? Open the blinds, refresh the pizzeria, clean the patio and add a few flowers to the tables.

Integrate some produce from a local grower into a new salad, specialty pizza, or a light and refreshing fruit-based dessert. Consider offering a Sunday brunch this year, even if it’s only once per month, and don’t forget to start planning and preparing for the Mother’s Day and Father’s Day crowds.

ADD A REVIEW WIDGET TO YOUR SITE Online restaurant reviews can be scary, but they are unavoidable. More than half of consumers will look at online reviews before trying your pizzeria, so why not make it easy for them by adding a widget to your website? Sites such as TripAdvisor and Yelp offer widgets that can be integrated into your site, displaying current star ratings and reviews. Adding one or both of these widgets shows new customers that you’re confident enough to share your rating on your site. It also reminds existing customers who love you to post a rating or review, and it’s a constant reminder for you to monitor and respond to both positive and negative feedback on those sites.

BORROW THIS IDEA: CREATE YOUR OWN EVENTS At Rally Pizza in Vancouver, Washington, husband-and-wife owners Alan Maniscalco and Shan Wickham believe every day can be an event when pizza is involved. “We’ve always done event-based things, especially with national holidays, but it wasn’t until the end of 2017 when we got really serious about having lots of events, both big and small, scheduled on Facebook,” says Maniscalco, the pizzeria’s executive chef. “We’ve seen some really great results.”

On Rally Pizza’s Facebook page, visitors find an array of events, ranging from National Pizza Day and Food and Wine of Rome Day to Persian New Year. Wickham, the general manager and pastry chef who also handles social media, schedules events a couple of months in advance so she doesn’t fall behind.

“In October, we started promoting our Happy Hour Mondays, Half-Price Wine Tuesdays and Family Dinner Wednesdays as events on Facebook, and we’re now getting more people in on slow days and promoting our bar program at the same time,” Wickham says.

QUICK PROMO TIP

Now that springtime has arrived, many towns will host local 5K runs and charity walks.

These events attract big crowds of both locals and out-of-towners, and adding your pizzeria as a sponsor can boost your exposure significantly. Make sure to heavily promote your support for the event on social media as well as on in-house signage and offer a post-race discount on your pizza for participants.

24 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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THE GOLD STANDARD

WE HAVE A NEW LOOK, BUT OUR PREMIUM MOZZARELLA CHEESE HAS NOT CHANGED Explore our complete line of quality cheeses at saputousafoodservice.com Saputo Cheese USA Inc., Lincolnshire, Illinois 60069 • (800) 824-3373 © 2018 Saputo Cheese USA Inc. All rights reserved. Saputo™, Bicycle 1954™ and design are registered or common law trademarks used by Saputo Cheese USA Inc.

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MONEYMAKERS

In addition to regular visits by Batman, the Joker and Harley Quinn, Gotham City Pizza offers promos like the Infinity Gauntlet Challenge (eat a 3’ stromboli in 30 minutes or less and get your picture taken with Thanos’ ultrapowerful Infinity Gauntlet glove).

DINING WITH THE DARK KNIGHT Marco Falletta seems like a pretty nice guy, but his pizzeria in Ormond Beach, Florida, attracts a rough clientele. We’re talking supervillains like the Joker, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. Fortunately, Batman, Wonder Woman and Spider-Man are also there to keep the peace. What else would you expect from a restaurant called Gotham City Pizza?

“I’ve been into comics since I was a kid and still love them,” Falletta says. “We’re a pizzeria that specializes in hand-tossed New York-style pizza, but we’re also a full retail store featuring comic books, artwork from comics creators, toys and statues.”

Falletta even has a “Secret Identities” page on Facebook that offers promotions, discounts and giveaways exclusively to page members, plus signature pies like The Hulk, the Wolverine and the Merc With a Mouth. “We have characters like Batman and Spider-Man that come in to take pictures with the kids and hang out,” Falletta says.

“Everything on the walls in the store is for sale, so it’s a different experience every time someone comes in to eat.”

QUICK TIP 1

GET IN THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT Easter isn’t the only holiday coming up in April. Start planning now to create promotions around calendar events like National Library Week (starting April 2), New Beer’s Eve (April 6), Husband Appreciation Day (April 21), and National Karaoke Week (starting April 23).

CIOCCOLATO’S: HOW SWEET IT IS! A pop-up pizzeria called Ristorante Cioccolato’s was a Valentine’s Day dream come true for pizza lovers and chocolate aficionados alike. Created by German baking products company Dr. Oetker, the restaurant, which operated in Toronto from February 9 to 14, featured wall-to-wall chocolate, from the pizzas to the all-chocolate tables, cutlery and decor, including a chocolate chandelier and chocolate paintings on the wall. The event introduced Dr. Oetker’s new brand of frozen chocolate pizzas. Toronto lifestyle blogger Gracie Carroll said the pizzas were “freaking delicious, but elements of their pop-up will have you scratching your head and wondering how they created something so cool.”

To launch its new line of frozen chocolate pizzas, Dr. Oetker redefined culinary decadence with a pop-up pizzeria in Toronto that was made entirely out of chocolate.

26 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Find us! Booth #4473

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MONEYMAKERS

GOING BIGGER AND BETTER Steve Mallie is a big-picture thinker, with an emphasis on “big.” The owner of Mallie’s Sports Grill & Bar attracted TV crews and print reporters to his Southgate, Michigan, operation on Valentine’s Day when he tried to build the world’s largest delivered pizza. “We got the itch,” Mallie says in a video that commemorated the occasion. “We’re always looking to go bigger and better.” He made it into the Guinness World Records book last summer with a 1,796-pound hamburger. This year, he made a 72” pizza for delivery, hoping to outdo Los Angelesbased Big Mama and Papa’s record-holding 54” Giant Sicilian. Mallie’s team delivered one of the pies to the Southgate Fire Department and two to local schools. He’s still waiting for Guinness to certify his effort, but he’s selling the pizzas anyway, starting at $300 each for cheese only.

Mallie’s Sports Grill & Bar now offers what owner Steve Mallie calls “the world’s largest delivery pizza” for $300. It requires 50 pounds of dough, 15 pounds of pepperoni, 20 pounds of sauce and 40 pounds of cheese.

QUICK TIP 2

STAR IN YOUR OWN SHOW Bruce Irving, host of the Smart Pizza Marketing podcast, says pizzerias should create a weekly video show (preferably live) on Facebook and/ or Instagram. Show off a recipe, profile a staff member, answer guests’ questions or tout an upcoming event in each episode. Video content expands your organic reach, and boosting your videos reaches an even bigger audience.

NICOLA PIZZA SOARS WITH THE EAGLES Nicola Pizza, located in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, soared with the Eagles in a Super Bowl promo that featured a special menu and a much-coveted grand prize giveaway: two tickets to the Philadelphia Eagles’ first home game for the 2018 season. But the pizza shop, renowned for its beef-and-cheese-stuffed Nico-Boli strombolis, went even further in its pro-Eagles fervor. In the event of a Philadelphia win, customers who wore Eagles gear and stayed for the entire game were promised a percentage discount on their check that matched the Eagles’ points total. That amounted to a hefty 41% discount, making everyone feel like a champ.

An inflatable Philadelphia Eagles player welcomed guests to Nicola Pizza on Super Bowl Sunday this year.

28 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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RECIPE OF THE MONTH

APRIL RECIPE

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Pizza Dough Twists

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INGREDIENTS:

DIRECTIONS:

48 oz. pizza dough 4 oz. sugar 1 large egg 4 oz. 2% milk 4 oz. flour (for dusting) 4 oz. Semolina flour 6 oz. hazelnut spread

Roll out each pizza dough ball to a 3/16” thickness and 6”-width rectangular shape on a floured cutting board. Cut into 11/2” strips. Then simply tie each of the pizza dough strips into a quick knot. Prepare an egg wash by combining the egg and milk with a whisk. Egg wash each of the pizza knots. Sprinkle coarse sugar crystals generously on each pizza knot. Let the pizza knots stand until they double in size.

Place the pizza knots on a pizza paddle that has been lightly sprinkled with semolina flour. Slide the pizza knots onto a preheated 425˚ pizza stone/oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden-brown. Let the pizza knots cool to room temperature and then drizzle with hazelnut spread.

30 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Be Inspired. Be Creative. Be Original.

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With a variety of product solutions, Nutella® is sure to meet the needs of every customer, giving them the experience they will enjoy with the brand they love.

Red, White & Blue Pizza with Nutella®

8.7% more operators are offering Nutella®

dessert pizzas today vs. Q4 2016.

With strawberries (25%) as one of the top 5 ingredients for dessert pizzas featuring Nutella®.

Source: Technomic’s MenuMonitor Q4 2016-2017

For exciting recipe ideas and to learn more about Nutella®, visit www.ferrerofoodservice.com, or call (800) 408-1505 for more information. © Ferrero 2018 Ferrero S.p.A.

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WHAT’S YOUR STORY?

R E L AT E D V I D E O DA N IEL PER EA D ROP S IN O N PA PA’ S PIZZA I N CA B O ROJ O , PUERTO R I CO, WH ER E FO O D A N D M U S I C A R E N AT IO N A L PA S S I ON S .

WATCH T H E V ID EO AT PMQ . CO M/PA PA S P I ZZA

PAPA’S PIZZA | C A B O

ROJO, PUERTO RICO

In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, Wilhelm Rodriguez proved that pizza can move mountains.

Story and photos by Daniel Lee Perea Puerto Rico is still recovering from the aftermath of last year’s Hurricane Maria. With thousands of people losing their homes and/or jobs and schools struggling to return to normalcy, many Puerto Ricans are giving up life on the island for the mainland United States. One entrepreneur who hasn’t thrown in the towel is Wilhelm Rodriguez. The owner and operator of Papa’s Pizza in Cabo Rojo was able to adapt to these disaster conditions and helped feed hungry citizens and relief workers in the aftermath of the hurricane. Rodriguez continues to operate his business, employ locals and feed the hungry, with no plans to leave. We caught up with him to get his story.

PMQ: Maria wasn’t the first hurricane you survived, was it?

Rodriguez: In the ’90s, it was Hurricane George. It was a real

nightmare. The town got flooded. It struck at night, so you couldn’t see anything that was happening. You could only hear it in the dark. It was like the winds were talking to you, howling. My house flooded.

PMQ: How was Hurricane Maria different than George?

Rodriguez: George lasted for, like, six or seven hours. But

Maria was striking the heart of the island for over 24 hours.

Like when Godzilla strikes, you could feel the floor and the structure of the house shaking. And this lasted 24 hours. I don’t really like talking about it, because I was scared—not for me, but for my family.

PMQ: How long were you without power?

Rodriguez: At my house, almost three months. At my pizza

shop, over a month. I couldn’t get out for three days because all the [fallen] trees were blocking the streets. Everybody was looking for something to eat. I was using my generator at the pizza shop and was making little pizzas. I sold them at a very cheap price so everybody could have something to eat. By the third day, I ran out of gas, because they needed it for all of the hospital generators. So I had an old backup oven that I converted to burn wood. I took the burners out and made a

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When Ricardo Rosselló, the governor of Puerto Rico, visited Papa’s Pizza after Hurricane Maria, he was delighted to receive a pizza portrait of himself created by owner Wilhelm Rodriguez.

chimney. I was making pizzas each day, sometimes until 7 p.m., with candles for light. I worked for more than a month with that oven every day.

PMQ: What was it like when you got your power back?

Rodriguez: I kept seeing the linemen who worked for the Energy

Alliance, and I started thinking, “Those guys are working hard and have families alone at home without power.” So I started sending pizzas to those guys, and they got to know me. One morning, they came to the pizza shop and asked for my phone number. They said, “Today, we’re going to have a big pizza party at your shop.” Fifteen minutes later, the power comes back on, and I said, “Oh, my God!” They called me back and said, “We want to eat pizza in the air conditioning and watch TV! So we got your power back on.” I was the first person in Cabo Rojo with power, and everybody was wondering how I got power. So I say pizza can move mountains!

breadsticks or cheese sticks for $10. The whole family can eat for $10. And I stopped charging for delivery. Other pizzerias are charging for delivery, but not me. I’m not going to get rich, but for me, I don’t really like money. I like to work, and if I can work and pay my bills, it’s good. I’m working for the people.

PMQ: Ricardo Rosselló, the governor of Puerto Rico, recently came by your shop, and you presented him with a pizza portrait with his face on it. How did that happen?

Rodriguez: When he was campaigning, he visited my shop

three times, and his wife was crazy about my pizza. When she was pregnant, she sent somebody to drive three hours to bring her pizza [from Cabo Rojo to San Juan] all the way across the island. So when he was in Cabo Rojo surveying the damage, he called me and said he wanted to come by. When he showed up, I was waiting for him with a pizza made with his face. He was amazed. He’d never seen something like that. I was very, very proud that day.

PMQ: How is the island’s recovery coming along?

Rodriguez: The hard thing right now is that everybody is leaving

the island. About 300,000 people just moved to Florida. Every day I say goodbye to a friend that is moving to the States.

Maybe they’ll come back when the island is more stable.

PMQ: As a pizzeria owner, how do you deal with a shrinking and financially devastated customer base?

Rodriguez: People always have to eat. I came up with a strategy.

I put together family combos that are very cheap. You could buy a big 20” pizza, garlic knots, 2-liter soda, and sometimes

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PMQ’s Daniel Perea visits with Rodriguez at the latter’s pizza shop in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico.

3/13/18 2:21 PM

PMQ: What does the future hold for Puerto Rico?

Rodriguez: The future is filled with potential. We have a lot of

artists and baseball players who come from Puerto Rico, so we have nice exposure to the world. There are a lot of beautiful places to see, and I think tourism is in the future. Disney is in negotiations to open a big theme park. Puerto Rico made a lot, lot, lot of things in the past, but there is a law that prevents Puerto Rico from [taking part in international trade]. Right now, [farmers] only produce for the people of Puerto Rico.

That’s a small demand. If there was more free trade, the farm terrains would get bigger, and we could export all kinds of things. Maybe the law will change.

PMQ: What is most rewarding about working in the pizza industry?

Rodriguez: Sometimes you’ll see families from four different

religions eating in my shop, spending time together, talking, saying, “Oh, this is good pizza!” and “Oh, can you pass me the cheese?” They forget about religion and just spend time together enjoying pizza. That, for me, is priceless. Pizza can move mountains.

Daniel Lee Perea is PMQ’s senior media producer.

Got a story to tell our readers?

What makes your pizzeria different?

Email Rick at editor@pmq.com and brag about yourself!

34 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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What's my Italian Inspiration? Creating luscious

bites that people feel good eating. A great pizza is all about three things: the dough, the sauce, and the cheese. I chose the cheese for my famous Chicken Piccata Pizza in a blind taste test.

When I found out it was Galbani®, I wasn’t surprised. It tasted like the summers I spent at my grandfather’s olive farm in Italy. Prova Pizzabar is a success because of the choices I make. And I’m proud to choose Italy’s favorite cheese.

—DONATELLA ARPAIA, CHEF/FOUNDER, PROVA PIZZABAR

©2017 Lactalis American Group, Inc., Buffalo, NY 14220. Galbani is a ® of Egidio Galbani S.r.l. All Rights Reserved.

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“I’m not going to be in denial. I just fix it, whatever it is.

You have to let the business be what it needs to be, not what you want it to be. You need to do what you need to do before you need to.”— KLIME KOVACESKI 36 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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the

upper crust Crust has quickly become an unassuming kingpin in Miami’s splashy dining scene—and the formula for success lies squarely on a husband-and-wife team with perfectly matched talents.

By Tracy Morin | Photos by Michael Price

Klime and Anita Kovaceski R E L AT E D V I D E O GO BEHI N D T HE SCE NE S W I T H KL I M E AN D ANITA KOVACESKI , ON E OF T HE P I ZZA I N DU S TRY’S P REEM I N EN T P OWE R COU P L ES, I N T HI S E XCLUS IVE F EAT URE VI D EO !

make a formidable foodservice duo. Walk into their Miami-based hotspot, simply called Crust, and Klime is effortlessly juggling preshift staff management and late-night social media, whipping up time-tested culinary delicacies, and roving tables to gauge customers’ satisfaction at an always-packed house.

P M Q.COM/CRUSTMIAMI

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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Senior copy editor Tracy Morin (bottom left) enjoys a meal at Crust in 2015, only months after the concept opened its doors.

Blast From the Past I met Klime Kovaceski via email in 2013, when he was working at New River Pizza & Grill in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He’d contacted me for a PMQ story on beverages. When traveling, I always love to meet my former sources and experience their operations firsthand, so before a trip to South Florida in the summer of 2015, I reached out to him. But he was no longer with that concept; he had just opened Crust and invited me for a visit. Over hours of eating, drinking wine and chatting about his new operation—and being utterly charmed by the enchanting Anita—I could tell they had a special concept.

Crust’s diverse yet well-edited menu strikes a balance between unique signature items and tried-and-true favorites.

The next year, I returned with my family. Even my impossible-to-please father raved about the food, pricing and portions. Back home, I watched proudly from afar as Crust blew up to enjoy packed houses, rave reviews from diners and national media attention—after all, I knew them when!

Anita, invariably, is greeting diners at the door—sometimes with hugs, but always with a genuine smile that puts the coldest of critics at ease. Together, they’ve cooked up a recipe for pizza prosperity that seems almost improbable.

But it’s been uniquely possible under these two unassuming masterminds, who’ve made their meteoric rise appear effortless in the way that only the truly talented (and detailobsessed) can.

Crust embodies hospitality at its finest—the kind of place where everyone feels like a VIP, where problems find solutions before complaints clamor from disgruntled diners, where success looks deceptively simple. That is, until you scratch the surface of the duo’s genius and find that the devil is in the details.

But it wasn’t until I was interviewing Klime for this article that I realized he has been a part of my life for much longer than the past five years. When he told me he worked at Jama in Miami, I was shocked—every year for a few weeks in the summer, my family and I were regulars at this Yugoslavian restaurant, where diners were seated in small caves and the food was top-notch. (My Croatian father loved the ćevapčići, a delicacy of his homeland.) While talking, Klime and I marveled at the crazy coincidence that he has been feeding me since childhood—and 30 years later, I’m writing about his latest concept for a national pizza magazine! —Tracy Morin

A LIFETIME OF LEARNING

Crust has been a lifetime in the making for Klime. At 15 years old, he enrolled in culinary school in Ohrid, Macedonia, then honed his skills at the Restaurant and Hotel Management College in Opatija, Croatia. During three months of on-site training during his education, he caught the eye of a staff member who later became director of a new high-end hotel and recruited Klime. “I was a musician and chose not to pursue that career, so the next most exciting and unpredictable profession was the restaurant industry,” he recalls. “With zero experience except for my school practice, at 21 years old, I may have been the youngest hotel executive chef in the former Yugoslavia.”

At his new gig on Ohrid Lake in Macedonia, he served the

elite—presidents and dignitaries, the upper crust of Balkan society. But more importantly, he gained invaluable people skills.

“It was the hardest job I ever did,” he says. “A chef in Europe is not some kind of supercook; he’s someone who manages. Becoming a boss at that young age shaped me: how to manage people, how to find the best positions for them, how to interact with them.

You can’t have one approach with everyone.”

38 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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If the kitchen is running behind on an order, staff members have the authority to offer the guest a little something extra—such as garlic rolls or a glass of wine or beer—on the house.

“Every single day, we have a 15-minute lineup with the front-of-house staff and make a plan how to win people’s hearts that day.”

— KLIME KOVACESKI

In 1983, Klime left a successful career (and a band in which he played lead guitar and wrote songs) to work in Amsterdam for a man who was planning a restaurant in Miami, where he relocated the following year. Stateside, he became executive chef at a Yugoslavian concept called Jama, building the restaurant by day and learning English through audio tapes at night. After a decade honing his skills, he opened his own awardwinning restaurant, Crystal Cafe, in Miami Beach, which served modern takes on old-world classics to senators, rock stars and exacting food critics. He sold the restaurant in 2004 and spent the next 10-plus years as a consultant, turning around struggling restaurants from Las Vegas and Houma, Louisiana, to Charlotte, North Carolina, and Providence, Rhode Island. By 2012, he returned to South Florida to help revive the New River Pizza & Grill in Fort Lauderdale.

Klime had been toying with the idea of a burger bar, noting that chefs were moving away from fine dining and into more casual concepts. But he fell for the pizza biz instead, eventually opening Crust in June 2015. “As a European, I wanted to go down the international route, and that’s how pizza came into the equation,” he explains. “With pizza, you have delivery and late-night business even when people aren’t coming to the restaurant.

You deal with people for just a couple of minutes on the phone and make money, versus two or three hours in a restaurant! But expectations were high in Miami because of my fine-dining background, and that’s how we built a real restaurant and real pizza place in one. Social media was the only vehicle we used to let know people know what Crust is all about. This is the key to our success: We built a good, strong product first, and then we worried about how to market it.”

40 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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DETAILS, DETAILS

Klime admits it took a while to fine-tune the Crust concept, especially learning to juggle both dining room and carryout/ delivery orders—essentially running two restaurants and two kitchens simultaneously. But another key ingredient was Anita, a fellow Macedonian whom Klime met online when she was living in Australia. She was an advertising agency executive for 15 years before moving to the United States in 2013 and, as the daughter of a Macedonian priest, honed her charms in a social home environment. “It was not unusual for dignitaries to be coming in and out of her family’s house, and that’s probably why she runs the front-of-house with ease and is so widely loved by locals as well as travelers,” Klime says. “She treats people like they’re in her house and can charm anyone all day long.”

Upon opening, Klime envisioned an 80% delivery and carryout operation, with 20% dine-in, but soon realized those numbers would be flipped. So he did the necessary dining room and kitchen updates for Crust to shine as a full-fledged restaurant: luxe wooden tabletops and matching chairs, a new, larger deck oven to keep up with volume, and

equipment to accommodate the extensive menu. “Crust’s layout is as good as it can possibly get, because we put months and months in planning every inch to be as functional as humanly possible,” Klime notes. “Servers have within reach, on every station, everything they possibly need.”

And, as the business grows, Klime is constantly thinking of possible improvements. Before the dining room was regularly maxed out, he’d designed and built an outside patio—now packed almost daily. When people complained the place was too noisy, he invested in professionally installed acoustic tiles. Tables are arranged to be easily reconfigured and joined for larger parties, and in one tight corner nook, Klime installed mirrors to create the illusion of more space. “That’s how I operate. I’m not going to be in denial—I just fi x it, whatever it is,” Klime says. “You have to let the business be what it needs to be, not what you want it to be. You need to do what you need to do before you need to.”

That attention to detail trickles down to staff relations, too. If the kitchen is running behind, employees have the authority to send out something extra—garlic rolls, a glass of wine, a dessert—on the house. And Klime makes

42 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Months before the place was packed to capacity, Klime Kovaceski had already designed and installed an outdoor patio (now itself packed almost every night of the week).

sure to avoid a common pitfall he’s witnessed as a consultant: a staff that’s simply guessing what the owner wants. That’s been particularly important as the concept has taken off.

“Expectations are knives with two blades,” Klime says. “Every single day, we have a 15-minute lineup with the front-ofhouse staff and make a plan how to win people’s hearts that day—not yesterday, not last year, not tomorrow, not next year, but that evening. We discuss who’s coming, what notes are on OpenTable for special occasions, which tables will be joined, where we’ll sit the not-so-easy-to-please customers, who’s going to take care of them, and so on. It’s never-ending training, retraining, cross-training, communicating as a group and oneon-one—and Anita and I being first to come to work and the last ones to leave. I want me, my wife and my staff to be on the same page, and I set them up for success.”

dissected Crust’s formula for success, and it was named one of the Best Restaurants in America for 2017 by OpenTable. “The greatest challenge was to explain to people that Crust is not there to compete with my past or anyone else,” Klime says. “It’s there to be the best in its own right, while still maintaining that we’re a casual Italian-American restaurant and pizza place. Crust is proving that pizza can be served in any concept, regardless of price point.”

While the Kovaceskis don’t do traditional advertising, they are active on social media, a task that Klime personally handles in rare downtimes. And he relishes this era of real-time feedback—a far cry from his earlier years as a chef. “No longer is success based on the opinion of one single famous food critic; it’s the thousands of people voicing their opinions while they’re still dining,” he says. “There is no longer the need for a genius PR agent and a super photographer making you look like somebody

“No longer is success based on the opinion of one single famous food critic; it’s the thousands of people voicing their opinions while they’re still dining.” — KLIME KOVACESKI

THE CRUST EXPLOSION

Crust may have opened in a less-desirable location with limited parking space and zero advertising, but word quickly spread about the pizzeria-restaurant hybrid—and attracted plenty of attention from satisfied diners and media alike. In a city with 3,500-plus restaurants ranked, Crust soon secured the No. 1 spot on TripAdvisor—and has maintained it for nearly three years now. A 2017 full-page story in The Wall Street Journal

that you’re not or wish you were. The public in real life will paint a pretty accurate picture of who you really are.”

Klime is now focusing on delivery and carryout to grow the business further (always thinking ahead, he recently created a new service counter to handle third-party deliveries). Crust, open six days a week for dinner only, is expected to rake in $2 million for 2018—meaning that Klime has encountered plenty of interest for expansion. But he’s not rushing the process. “We

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receive quite a few offers to expand, and we will eventually— but we don’t want to make that common mistake of a second location not succeeding,” he says. “For Crust’s second location, failure is not an option.”

After all, Crust’s success is not based on a clever concept or even fastidious business systems, but on the unique duo that keeps the place hopping: Klime and Anita. Klime believes the concept would be successful anywhere, but only with operators who love and embrace the business as much as they do. “You need someone with the right passion, drive and energy,” he explains. “I need a great operator, or I will not do it. This is a unique concept. A carbon copy is not possible, because it’s based on people.”

And though Klime still counts music as his “little addiction,” his passion for pleasing people has never wavered; if anything, it’s stronger than ever as he helms a wildly successful operation that has won the hearts of nearly all who enter. “If you don’t have love for this business and money and success are the only thing you are interested in, do yourself the biggest favor in life and do something else—anything!” Klime says with a laugh.

“The hospitality industry is one of the hardest. But I can’t wait to come here. I love what I do. I say that one day I’m going to get a job. It’s seven days of work, but to me, it’s easy.”

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

Klime Kovaceski, after enjoying an impressive career in fine dining, came to the pizza industry when seeking a more casual direction for his next concept.

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Garlic Jim’s gluten-free crusts are created and par-baked in a commissary before being delivered to the chain’s individual restaurants.

The

Gluten-Free The prevalence of gluten-free pizza is making it a popular choice for those with and without celiac disease. By Liz Barrett Foster

Although celiac disease is a real condition, going glutenfree isn’t a medical necessity for many pizza lovers; it’s a lifestyle choice.

Its prevalence in American society means gluten-free pizza has evolved into a style of its own, offered by companies ranging from the major national and regional chains to local shops and hometown food trucks.

But is the gluten-free gold mine nearly tapped out, or is it just starting to produce?

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“You always want to have a disclaimer letting customers know that the restaurant itself is not 100% free of flour and other potential cross-contaminants.” — TODD PARENT, EXTREME PIZZA The no-gluten diet was actually introduced in the 1940s. But no one outside of the medical field paid much attention until nearly six decades later, thanks to an Italian doctor named Alessio Fasano. Puzzled as to why celiac disease was so rare in the United States, Fasano conducted a seven-year study, which concluded that celiac disease existed in one out of every 133 Americans, although most didn’t know they had it.

Once Fasano’s study was released, more studies followed, showcasing a variety of adverse effects that gluten (a protein complex present in wheat, rye and barley) could have on the human body. Adopting a gluten-free diet quickly went from being a doctor’s prescription reserved for celiac sufferers to the latest diet craze.

Following an explosion of gluten-free retail products, pizzerias of all sizes began introducing gluten-free pizzas around 2010, with letters pouring in from thankful celiac sufferers who were finally able to enjoy one of their favorite foods. By 2016, gluten-free diets, while necessary for those suffering from celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (about 1% of the population), had become all the rage among the general population,

those who may be negatively affected by cross-contamination. Celiac sufferers are still depending on you to help them make an informed decision about the pizza they eat.

MANAGING GLUTEN EXPOSURE Extreme Pizza’s Gluten-Free Pandora

with 8% of Americans limiting their gluten intake. In fact, sales of gluten-free products are projected to rise to $7.59 billion by 2020, according to Statista.

For a long time, however, the problem with gluten-free pizzas was their taste.

Fortunately, over the years, pizza chefs have developed better recipes, and gluten-free crusts have improved dramatically in flavor and texture, with more sizes and varieties being offered.

The words “gluten-free” can now be found on thousands of pizzeria menus, as the target market has expanded over the years from those with celiac disease to those with gluten sensitivities and those who simply believe it’s a healthier option.

Still, the No. 1 priority when offering gluten-free pizza should always be protecting customers with celiac disease.

Precautions must be taken, just as with shellfish and nut allergies, to safeguard

No matter how careful you are with flour, tools and separate ovens, unless a glutenfree pizza is prepared in a completely gluten-free environment, there will be exposure to trace amounts of gluten at some point during the preparation process. There’s no point in hiding this fact, so the best practice is to put a disclaimer on your menus and website and to make sure your employees explain the risk to customers ordering glutenfree pizza over the phone.

Garlic Jim’s, headquartered in Mill Creek, Washington, had created a proprietary gluten-free pizza recipe and began offering it in all 16 of its stores by 2009, according to CEO Dwayne Northrop. “We’re really proud of our gluten-free crust, because it actually tastes like a pizza crust,” says Northrop.

“But it was a challenge to make, because it doesn’t perform the same way as regular pizza dough.”

Northrop says the pizza accounts for 10% to 20% of sales, with its stores

GLUTEN-FREE: BY THE NUMBERS

1 in 133

Number of Americans with celiac disease Source: University of Chicago Medicine Celiac Disease Center

3.1 million

$7.59 billion

Number of Americans who follow a gluten-free diet

Projected sales of gluten-free products by 2020

Source: Forbes.com

Source: Statistica

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in Washington and Oregon reaping the highest gluten-free sales on average. “We had a high around 2010 because there weren’t a lot of people offering it, and we were really making a big deal out of gluten-free,” he says. “Our franchisees were doing free samplings and approaching gluten-free groups during those first few years.”

Northrup notes that the restrictions have loosened up a little bit as far as needing to have each store inspected and certified by a celiac expert, but Garlic Jim’s still follows the same protocols it used in the early days of the offering.

“We changed out the flour that we use to slap out doughs to a mix of cornmeal and rice flour, so there isn’t any gluten flying around,” he says. “We have different utensils, screens, peels, cutters and more.” Additionally, the 14” gluten-free crusts are created and par-baked in a commissary before being delivered to individual Garlic Jim’s stores.

“Gluten-free is one of the fastest growing segments of our menu, with sales above 10% or 12%,” says Todd Parent, CEO of San Francisco-based Extreme Pizza, which offers a pizza that’s both vegan and gluten-free in 40 of its 46 stores. “We switched to Smart Flour Foods pizza about two years ago when we dedicated a substantial portion of our menu to gluten-free and vegan and wanted our gluten-free pizza to be vegan, too.

72%

“We’ve gone through a lot of training and think that our processes are very replicable,” Parent adds. “A lot of it is just the handling and separation of products. Of course, you always want to have a disclaimer letting customers know that the restaurant itself is not 100% free of flour and other potential crosscontaminants, but we can keep it almost 100% gluten-free.”

A housemade gluten-free pizza was on the menu when the fast-casual chain Blaze Pizza, based in Pasadena, California, first opened in 2012, and it’s still available at all of the company’s nearly 250 locations, according to chief marketing officer Shivram Vaideeswaran.

“The last thing you want is to not give your customers a choice,” Vaideeswaran says. “Our gluten-free pizza has become one of our most beloved and asked-about products.” He notes that the company initially expected to sell the most glutenfree pizzas on the coast, but the style has been selling well everywhere.

“When a customer orders a gluten-free pizza, we always ask them if it’s because of an allergy, a dietary restriction or a lifestyle choice,” Vaideeswaran says. “If it’s a dietary restriction or allergy, we make sure that we’re changing gloves along the way, trying to reduce the amount of cross-contamination with traditional flour.”

Domino’s, headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, was both lauded and

Percentage of people on gluten-free diets who don’t have celiac disease Source: Forbes.com

27%

Gluten-Free Crust Alternatives Over the last decade, we’ve seen dozens of creative ways to have your pizza and eat it, too—sans gluten. Here are just a few of the alternatives to wheat-based flour dough we’ve seen:

•

Cauliflower

•

Polenta

•

Cheese

•

Zucchini

•

Quinoa

•

Chicken or ground beef

•

Sweet potato

•

Butternut squash

•

Carrot

•

Beet

•

Chickpea

Other Common Gluten Sources and Substitutes Soy sauce Substitute gluten-free soy sauce or wheat-free tamari

Breadcrumbs Substitute gluten-free crackers

Pasta-based sides Substitute rice or quinoa

Wheat/rye crackers Substitute rice crackers or chopped veggies

Percentage of consumers who think going gluten-free helps them lose weight Source: FastCasual.com

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Garlic Jim’s began offering a gluten-free pizza at all 16 of its stores in 2009.

criticized when it became the first major pizza chain to start offering gluten-free pies in nearly 5,000 locations across the country in 2012. While many glutenfree-lifestyle customers hailed the introduction of the menu item, serious celiac sufferers pointed out the potential for cross-contamination.

While developing the menu offering, Domino’s sought the advice of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) to create a safe environment for its gluten-free pizzas. And while the NFCA could not approve the pizzas for celiac sufferers, they helped Domino’s create procedures and disclaimers alerting those with celiac disease that the gluten-free pizza is not completely gluten-free. “The gluten-free crust remains a great option for many of our customers and has sold consistently and steadily since its introduction,” says Jenny Fouracre, Domino’s director of public relations.

And, importantly, recognition by Domino’s of the style’s selling power

8%

led to other pizzerias—big and small— taking that first step toward gluten-free menu items.

GLUTEN-FREE GROWTH

Several factors can play into the growth or decline of an individual store’s gluten-free pizza sales. Additional choices are now available at more restaurants, and as operators and chefs gain a better understanding of glutenfree cooking, they’re creating new dishes for the gluten-intolerant crowd.

“We’re continuing to innovate with new offerings like desserts and salads that are gluten-free,” Parent says. “It’s great that other restaurants are offering gluten-free menus. It keeps us all innovating and bringing awareness to gluten-free, which will only get bigger.”

Vaideeswaran agrees, adding that he’s seeing gluten-free and vegan merging together now, which is why Blaze Pizza’s gluten-free pizza is also vegan, as is Extreme Pizza’s. “Most of the big players are offering gluten-free pizza now,” Vaideeswaran says. “It’s an important

Average percentage of sales increase for restaurants that add gluten-free options Source: MenuTrinfo

trend that keeps us ahead of the curve with dietary trends and ensures that we have options available for everyone. You never want to have to tell a customer, ‘Sorry, we can’t serve you due to a dietary restriction.’”

Having a gluten-free option shows customers that you have something for everyone, Vaideeswaran concludes.

“It becomes less of a veto vote going forward,” he says. “If you have a friend who can’t eat from the menu, you’re less likely to go to that restaurant.”

Whether you’re exploring glutenfree as a new option or wanting to expand your offerings, consult with a nutritionist or celiac foundation to determine the best way to proceed.

Liz Foster is PMQ’s editor at large and author of Pizza: A Slice of American History.

R E L AT E D V I D E O MICH ELE D ’A MELIO O F A MA N O P I ZZA A N D PMQ ’ S B R IA N H ER N A N D EZ D EMON S T R AT E A N EW G LUT EN - FR EE CR UST MIX F ROM C A P U TO. WATCH T H E V ID EO AT PMQ . CO M/CA PUTO G LUT EN FR EE

Percentage of PMQ Reader Census 64.45% respondents who offer glutenfree options in their pizzerias Source: PMQ 2017 Reader Census Survey

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Moves Thinking of adding a mobile unit to your operation?

The opportunities are plentiful—but success can prove elusive without the proper preparation.

By Tracy Morin When food trucks blasted onto the scene in the aughts, many brick-and-mortar operators felt threatened by these roving beasts manned by rogue foodservice upstarts. Some even decided to hop on the bandwagon with their own rolling restaurants. But they quickly found out that a mobile operation is no walk (or drive) in the park; they present their own unique set of challenges—and, like with traditional outlets, there are no shortcuts to success. We spoke to successful mobile operators to get the scoop on what to expect when you go mobile.

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IL P R IMO P IZ Z A & WINGS

Don’t overestimate the power of social media—or underestimate the need for a solid website, advises Si Mendoza of IL Primo Pizza & Wings.

ROLLING OUT

Opportunities can be plentiful for on-the-go operations, but experts agree the operator must take the initiative and think ahead. “In a restaurant, you market yourself and expect people to visit, but it’s the opposite in a mobile operation,” explains Si Mendoza, owner of IL Primo Pizza & Wings in Richmond, Texas. “You have to be constantly reaching out to people, looking for events. And for each opportunity, you have to ask if there’s enough meat on the bone—how many food trucks will be there, what’s the drive time, how big the event is—to determine if it’s worthwhile.”

Michael Wagner, co-owner of Wagner’s Pizza Bus in Two Rivers, Alaska, agrees that wheeling and dealing is a must when going mobile. In addition to working private events, grand openings, festivals and fairs, he has assembled bagged lunches for forestry service firefighters in the summer; set up at a car dealership, where the owner paid for $500 worth of pizzas to lure buyers; and even provided pizza to customers racing in the Iditarod. “You have to make a lot of phone calls,” he says. “Then you have to hope that people recommend you, try different spots and events, and make a better product than the next guy.”

You may also have to consider seasonality when dealing with an outdoor operation. Michael Russell, co-owner of FuZe Event Group in Mansfield, Ohio, works under contract with NASCAR and other autocross

Potential Pitfalls Seeking mobile success? Avoid these common operator mistakes: “Don’t get yourself in too deep at first by overpurchasing numerous operations. Focus on one project with pricing, food quality, staff and codes to get it on the ground. And always have backup staff ready to go with you on the road.

Many people will get exhausted or feel overworked and quit.”

—Michael Russell, co-owner, FuZe Event Group, Mansfield, OH “When starting out, don’t worry too much about spending on a fancy POS system. You first need to figure out if your concept is going to work. We started with pens, pads and a cash register. Square is a great way to get started, and not too expensive. Also, the more condensed and simple your menu is, the easier it will be to keep up with demand from a storage perspective. Finally, try to avoid buying brand-new equipment; you can save so much money with used equipment. Occasionally, you will have problems with a used unit, but if you do your due diligence, you should be able to benefit.”

—Jeremy Portwood, owner, Spartan Pizza, Austin, TX

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Operations like FuZe Event Group in Mansfield, Ohio, have to limit their months of operation due due to weather conditions, a factor that most food truck operators need to take into consideration.

events and caters inside event centers, but his months of operation are limited.

“During the summer, we do college football game-day pre-events such as The Ohio State University block party, which provides a good level of fun and revenue generated throughout the year,” Russell says. “But we have only a six-month period here in Ohio due to the weather.”

Finally, it’s helpful if your town or city is amenable to food truck culture. In Austin, Texas, Jeremy Portwood, owner of Spartan Pizza, finds a slew of events to take part in, which encourages calls for catering office lunches, weddings, festivals and concerts. “But you need to know that it will take a lot of hard work,” Portwood warns. “Having a good product is obvious, but you also need to have good marketing and brand presence.

And a great location is key, whether that’s a few different locations that you visit each week, or if you set up in a semipermanent location.”

SOCIAL NECESSITIES

Food truck operators know that affordable marketing starts online, usually on social media platforms. “We started with Facebook and added Twitter and Instagram two years ago,” Wagner

“Get to know the people giving permits and give them a blueprint of your layout rather than building and having to change it later. The health department can make or break you, so do your research and make sure you don’t need to change direction.”

— MICHAEL WAGNER, WAGNER’S PIZZA BUS

says. “Yelp and TripAdvisor help with tourists, while locals like to see what we’re doing with new pizzas on social media. We’re also on sites where people follow food trucks. Every day, we can punch in our times, location and directions, which automatically posts to all of our social media pages so anyone following us can see those updates.”

Since customers spend more time on social media than reading a local newspaper, sites like Facebook are a good place for coupons. It’s an oldfashioned marketing strategy updated for

the online age. “Our social media offers specials—for example, show this at our next event for a ‘buy one, get one free’ pizza, or to receive $5 off your next order over $10—to attract previous customers,” Russell says. “And for our new potential customer base, we take daily pictures of our products and post them at ‘hungry’ times of the day.”

Mendoza makes it clear that, while social media is important, its power shouldn’t be overestimated. The real necessity is a website. “We’ve used social media for six years, and no one

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is coming in based on a post we did,” he says. “Rather, it’s subliminal marketing; you’re branding yourself. The most important thing is just to exist online. Your website is your No. 1 store, because it’s open 24 hours a day, and anyone can access it. So make sure you have pictures of your product and a list of your upcoming locations.”

LOOKING AT LOGISTICS

The main considerations for a mobile operation include the unit itself—trailer or food truck and its equipment—and the permits, codes and other technicalities that will keep you operating.

Russell believes that when looking for a vehicle or trailer, the main concern is its age, not the paint job, design or graphics. “It’s typically the floor, the pipes and cooler/fridge that can pose problems, as well as ovens and grills,” he says. “Mobile kitchens have a lot of weight to them and can badly damage a floor even in good shape, in no time.”

Of course, the unit you purchase depends on your goals and concept. Portwood explains that parking and space aren’t always plentiful, so if you’ll be moving around a lot, seeking something that’s easy to park and maneuver allows you to participate in more opportunities and avoid extra headaches. “You also need something reliable, because you don’t want to be constantly dealing with maintenance issues on top of trying to successfully get your food in front of customers,” Portwood adds. “Do you already have a vehicle to tow a trailer? Do you feel comfortable towing a trailer? If not, you may want to stay away from trailers.

And, whatever you end up with, branding it appropriately is key.”

Then you’ll need the basics to operate. Mendoza notes that every area has its own requirements, but necessities include a three-compartment sink, hand-washing sink, make line, oven, fire extinguisher and cooling system. “You have to think about space and movement, and ventilation is important in a small space,” he says. “But I’ve found that A/C doesn’t do anything for

“Having a good product is obvious, but you also need to have good marketing and brand presence.

And a great location is key, whether that’s a few different locations that you visit each week, or if you set up in a semipermanent location.”

— JEREMY PORTWOOD, SPARTAN PIZZA

Social Media Strategies When you’re on the move, social media becomes a key tool for communicating with customers. Jeremy Portwood, owner of Spartan Pizza in Austin, Texas, shares these top tips for a winning online presence: •

Share pics of food and videos. Focus on what you are making and how you make it. The idea is that people will see your post and crave whatever it is you’re serving.

•

Focus on people. We like to give our employees a little spotlight. They feel great that they are a part of the brand image, and people can relate by seeing them there.

•

Be yourself. Don’t be constantly selling to your fans/customers. They don’t want to be sold to; they want to feel like they are part of something.

New customers should feel like they have discovered something new and exciting.

•

Don’t post too much. If you have something interesting going on, then post more about that story—but don’t post just to post. Remain relevant and interesting.

•

Find someone to help you do it. Running a food business is all-consuming, and social media is easily a full-time job. Develop your style and voice, then get someone to help you interact on social media using that voice.

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you; save your money and focus on insurance, fuel and permits, and just invest in fans.”

Portwood also set up his operation based on the flow of the kitchen, keeping in mind optimal organization at the service window to easily facilitate orders and service customers. Then consider the regulatory hoops you might have to jump through—both before opening and during operation. “Most of the things that are required are best practices to ensure public health and safety,” Portwood says.

“But here in Austin, they’ve updated things a lot since we started, so you have to stay informed and continue to move with the changes.”

Even better, be proactive about meeting those important requirements. Wagner stresses that it’s helpful to consult regulatory agencies before you start building—if your plans aren’t feasible, they’ll tell you ahead of time. “Get to know the people giving permits and give them a blueprint of your layout rather than building and having to change it later,” he advises. “The health department can make or break you, so do your research and make sure you don’t need to change direction.” Wagner also recommends volunteering in a cart, truck or something similar for a week or two, just to see how the system works—and to see what you’re getting into!

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

Wagner’s Pizza Bus has become a familiar and welcome sight around Two Rivers, Alaska.

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SAL & MOOKIE’S

THE EXPERT John Arena, co-owner of Metro Pizza in Las Vegas, details how olive oil can be the secret weapon in any pizzeria owner’s culinary toolbox.

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Favorite My

Ways to Use Olive Oil

By John Arena | Photography by Jeff Green

Using high-quality olive oil in nearly every segment of your menu goes a long way toward improving your food quality across the board.

Olive oil may be the most critical and underappreciated ingredient in the kitchen of any pizzeria. When I was growing up, the aroma of meatballs frying in rich, high-quality Italian olive oil was the signal that Sunday dinner was being prepared and all was right with the world.

SAL & MOOKIE’S

Needless to say, no Italian restaurant or pizzeria would dare use anything but the very best extra-virgin olive oil. Unfortunately, over time, rising prices and diminished quality has combined with a lack of understanding by both consumers and restaurant operators to set the stage for both inferior flavor and outright food fraud. For these reasons, I’ve moved towards using mainly fall-harvest California olive oil, which, in my opinion, represents the best combination of value, consistency and quality.

Treating olive oil as a key ingredient in your recipes—and not just a commodity purchase—can go a long way toward improving your food quality across the board. Sourcing the best oil from a reputable supplier is well worth the investment of time. You will find olive oil is perhaps the one ingredient that can be used in virtually every segment of your menu. When you make the right choices, olive oil can become the secret weapon in your culinary toolbox.

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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Dough

Olive oil serves many purposes in a pizza dough formula, influencing everything from the dough’s stretchiness to texture, crispiness and the flavor of the crust. John Arena says he adds “a substantial amount” of olive oil to his pizza dough.

66 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Sauce

Olive oil isn’t just for drizzling.

Arena recommends adding olive oil to your pizza sauce for additional rich flavor and mouthfeel.

Sauté

Although olive oil has a relatively low smoke point, it’s still a great oil for sauteing foods. Olive oil makes the other flavors in your sauteed dishes shine and helps the foods to better retain their nutritional value compared to other oils.

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On pasta For pasta entrees, olive oil can be used in almost any sauce, from a traditional marinara to pesto. “I love including it in a roasted red-pepper puree,” Arena says.

“After dressing the pasta, I even finish the dish with a hearty drizzle of the highest quality oil.”

On sandwiches A drizzle of high-quality olive oil lends a richness to sandwiches that can make condiments unnecessary while adding a healthy dose of monounsaturated fats and antioxidants.

On pizza Olive oil can be drizzled on top of your pizza before or after baking to add fragrance and another layer of flavor in each bite.

68 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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On focaccia Every component of focaccia—from making the dough to the post-oven finish—is driven by a generous use of delicious olive oil. “Focaccia quite simply wouldn’t exist without olive oil,” Arena notes.

GET THE RECIPE JO HN AREN A’ S FO CACCIA RECI P E I S AVAI L ABLE ONLINE I N T HE RECI P E BANK: P M Q.COM/ RECI P E- BANK/ AREN A- FO CACCI A

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Over gelato

Olive oil lends artisanal flair to many desserts. Try using it as a healthy substitute for butter in your cakes, Arena recommends. “My recent favorite is to drizzle golden olive oil on vanilla gelato and finish it with flaked sea salt and fresh lemon zest—it’s a refreshing way to end a meal.”

JEFF GREEN PHOTOGRAPHY

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Photographer Jeff Green shoots a variety of subjects, including architecture, food, products and portraits. His clients include well-known chefs Thomas Keller, Joel Robuchon and Emeril Lagasse.

WATCH TH E VIDEO AT PMQ.COM/ARE NA_ OLIV EO IL

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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PIZZA WITHOUT BORDERS

THE UNSTOPPABLE JUAN Mexico City, Mexico

The first time Tony Gemignani lost a dough spinning competition, he was up against rising star Juan Hermosillo at the U.S. Pizza Team Trials in New York. It was 2004, and Hermosillo brought a new twist to the art of freestyle by incorporating a skit, costume changes and energetic salsa dancing into his routine. Hermosillo went on to revolutionize freestyle acrobatics to include flips, handstands and even headstands. These break dancing moves, all performed while spinning a dough disc, have become mainstays on the world stage in Parma, Italy.

But Hermosillo’s career in pizza has been an arduous one, ever since the February 2004 drive to his first pizza competition, from Los Angeles to Columbus, Ohio, when his car broke down in a bitterly cold snowstorm. Through a series of health crises, injuries, deportation back to Mexico, robberies at his pizza store, and the birth of an ill son, Hermosillo has had plenty of reasons to give up on pizza. At his last appearance at the World Pizza Championships in 2013, after months of training for the

Individual Freestyle Competition, he broke both his knees and bloodied his face during a daring backflip. Nevertheless, he remains determined.

“I’m healthy again and back training,” Hermosillo affirms.

He set off for Italy in February and met fellow dough spinners to begin training with real dough months before the upcoming World Pizza Championship competition. He is using all of his resources to make the trip, he says, and when he returns to Mexico, he will have nothing, not even a place to live. But, he concludes optimistically, “If you have your health, you can do anything.”

To view an extensive collection of instructional dough spinning videos created by Hermosillo, visit PMQ’s YouTube Channel. The series, called Pizza Theater, is designed to teach both the basics of dough spinning and how to combine moves, making for an entertaining and educational viewing.

72 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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USING VR TO TEACH KITCHEN STANDARDS Stockholm, Sweden

In Sweden, the board of health is using virtual reality to train restaurant owners to keep their kitchens clean and up to Swedish health standards. Putting on the VR goggles transports the viewer into a commercial kitchen, with a virtual guide that gives a tour and points out the specific issues health inspectors will be looking for. Viewers can “walk around” the kitchen and, of course, take their time in the virtual world, learning each key point at their own pace.

The government isn’t the only one tapping into the power of virtual reality; Swedish furniture chain Ikea lets customers use the HTC Vive headset to explore the cabinets and counters of a virtual home kitchen before making a purchase. They can poke around the space, open drawers and look at the utensils, change the colors, and even adjust their height to view the scene from the perspective of a child—all from the comfort of their own living room.

ITALIAN HAPPY HOUR Milan, Italy

Happy hour in Italy isn’t quite like happy hour in America.

Whereas Americans tend to focus on the economics of drinking more for less money, Italian happy hour—called aperitivo—is all about the food. It’s commonplace for bars and cafés to offer anything from olives and nuts to an unlimited buffet of hot and cold appetizers with the purchase of just one drink.

Nowhere in Italy is the culture of aperitivo more developed than in Milan. Traditionally, the Milanese drink cocktails during aperitivo, especially ones containing bitters to stimulate the appetite. The idea of aperitivo is to prepare yourself for dinner, though Americans may easily see it as a way to spoil their appetite rather than whet it.

Lastly, since Italians tend to eat dinner much later than Americans, their happy hours generally fall between 6 and 9 p.m., around the time Americans are sitting down for a full evening meal.

To see how aperitivo works, check out a video filmed in Milan at pmq.com/italianhappyhour.

Missy Green is a pizza spinning gold medalist and PMQ’s international correspondent. She currently resides in the Netherlands.

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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Mobile Brick Oven Solutions: Expanding Your Operation SMART MARKET

SPONSORED CONTENT

MARRA FORNI OVENS These days, many event planners are not just looking for a caterer; they want to offer their guests a food experience.

Mobile catering has become a vibrant and dynamic trend in the foodservice industry today because it’s interactive, fast, and serves up an authentic product in literally seconds.

With mobile ovens by Marra Forni, you can offer these key features to your patrons in a customized, quality oven brought on-site just for their occasion.

People love to gather around with family and friends to enjoy the warmth and aroma of great food. Brick-fired pizza offers a wow factor, especially when it’s made in a beautiful oven. In addition to giving guests options, pizza bars are a fun and decorative way to cater a wedding, grand openings, graduation parties and any other kind of celebration.

Brick-fired ovens have dominated the pizza fast-casuals because their high temperature provides a pizza that is both fast and delicious. Official standards of Neapolitan pizza say that pizzas should be cooked no more than 90 seconds, according to the AVPN (the True Neapolitan Pizza Association). In addition to being fast, the stone provides the authentic taste and texture of a real Neapolitan pizza.

“Marra Forni ovens offer us both performance and elegance, two key elements to our concept,” say the operators of Canada’s No. 900. “With their solution, we do not have to make any compromise. Since the beginning of our journey, Marra Forni has been an important partner.

We sincerely believe that they play an important role in our success.” But it won’t just be the taste of the pizza that gets noticed. Marra Forni gives added marketing value by customizing the look of your operation. Your visibility will be enhanced, whether at private parties or festivals. Their design team will work with you to accomplish the tile design that complements your unique brand. All of their ovens are built to the highest standards and exceed Federal Highway Safety standards.

Ready to offer your clients a taste of Italy? Marra Forni offers a wealth of knowledge and experience to help each new client quickly learn the tricks of the trade needed to run a successful mobile operation. To find out more about the mobile oven built for speed and quality, visit their website at marraforni.com or contact them at 888-239-0575.

“Marra Forni ovens offer us both performance and elegance, two key elements to our concept. We sincerely believe they play an important role in our success.” - No. 900 74 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Is Your Online Customer Service up to Speed?

SMART MARKET

SPONSORED CONTENT

SPEEDLINE SOLUTIONS Customers hate waiting. And never has the need for speed been more important than in today’s digital economy. Online orders easily make up anywhere from one-quarter to onehalf of all sales in carryout and delivery operations. And simply being online isn’t enough. Without a fast, easy-touse interface on a mobile-friendly site, you may be losing customers before they ever get a chance to place an order.

Your customers have high expectations online. They’ve become accustomed to ordering platforms like Amazon, Kindle and iTunes, with powerhouse tech resources to ensure speed and reliability. “Whereas, three years ago, a customer might have patiently waited for a site to load or fumbled through a confusing order flow, they’re not willing to do that anymore,” says Jennifer Wiebe, marketing manager at SpeedLine.

For every one-second delay on a mobile site, a 2017 retail study by Google and SOASTA shows, purchases can drop up to 20%. “We call it the ‘click-away effect,’” Wiebe says.

“But it really amounts to lost sales—and lost customers.” A Forrester Consulting study showed that 79% of visitors who click away from a slow-loading site will never come back.

On top of that, 44% will complain to a friend or in an online review, compounding the effect.

“A pizzeria can deliver the best food and service inside its four walls and yet be losing orders—and customers—

to a subpar mobile ordering experience,” says Wiebe.

“Restaurant owners rely on their POS and online ordering partners to help them compete in this new ‘digital’ segment of their market.”

That is the focus of SpeedDine, the new web and mobile ordering service from SpeedLine, Wiebe notes. To deliver the kind of experience your customers expect, SpeedLine built the new service on Amazon’s own mobile commerce platform. Orders flow seamlessly into the POS from a mobile ordering interface that provides your customers with live pricing, accurate pickup and delivery times, and secure payment.

The flexibility to support restaurant brands’ technology needs has been part of the SpeedLine DNA for more than 20 years and will continue with ongoing support for third-party online ordering platforms as well.

The restaurant brands that are winning online, Wiebe notes, are delivering speed and convenience. “For 10, 25, maybe 50% of pizza and delivery customers,” she adds, “the mobile ordering experience is the restaurant’s new front door.”

To learn more about the SpeedDine system, visit speedlinesolutions.com.

For every one-second delay on a mobile site, a 2017 retail study by Google and SOASTA shows, purchases can drop up to 20%.

76 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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BAKED SPECIALTIES & Mozzarella or Stromboli

Calzones with Ricotta

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Pizza & Pasta Factory

Mon thru Sat

11am – 10pm

Catering Menu

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or

able

10pm

& 6 Foot rs, Wraps 718. and Heroe 966. s 5838 Ambo0114 • 718.

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in Princess

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ERTS

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KING KONG PRINTING

78 PMQ P ZZA MAGAZ NE

deazone ap 18 ndd 78

There’s a reason why thousands of pizzerias direct-mail menus to their local communities.

“Direct mailing has a hugely successful track record,” says Gregg Linder, owner of King Kong Printing. “When prospective customers receive something tangible in their hands, they are going to react a lot quicker than something digital, which is easily looked over.” That isn’t to say that digital marketing has no value.

The real problem is that many community pizzerias are not easily found online.

Connecting to customers in the mail helps you stand out next to more digital-savvy competition and offers a personal touch. “We can target certain demographics, saturate a neighborhood, or send a postcard if a customer hasn’t visited in a while so you can retain the customers you already have,” says Linder. “It’s all entirely scalable depending on your goals and your budget.” King Kong Printing will even advise you on how to bring the mail pieces to the post office yourself, if you’re looking for ways to cut costs.

Don’t know where to start? King Kong Printing offers one-on-one consulting to help you all the way from concept to delivery.

With a full-service graphics department, marketing consultants and an endless array of promotional items to brand with your logo, King Kong Printing is your one-stop shop for bringing your marketing goals to fruition.

Their graphics team creates exclusive custom designs, so your logo will never look like anyone else’s.

King Kong Printing is able to offer you the highest quality, full-color printing for less because of buying power and a state-of-theart print facility. “We’ve been in business since 1991, and during our growth we’ve been able to reduce our printing costs. We match the specific job to the right kind of press, so we can always get the best price,” says Linder. “If you can think it…we can ink it for less.

“Every business needs to advertise,” Linder says. “And mailing menus or postcards is a call to action and one of the most effective ways we’ve seen in our nearly 30 years in business.”

Call King Kong Printing to find out how they can help you grow your business, whether it be through print, promotional items or even digital and social media marketing. King Kong Printing crushes the competition because they do it all. Call them today at 732-972-7716.

THE WORLD S AUTHOR TY ON P ZZA

3 13 18 2 35 PM

# Pizza Gold FOLLOW

@USPIZZATEAM &

@US_PIZZATEAM

AS THEY COMPETE AT THE 2018

WORLD PIZZA CHAMPIONSHIP PARMA, ITALY

APRIL 9, 10 & 11, 2018

In it to Win It The 2018 Team:

Lenny Rago

Michael LaMarca

Master Pizza, Cleveland, OH

Jason Samosky

Panino’s Pizza, Evanston, IL

Samosky’s Homestyle Pizzeria, Valley City, OH

Bruno Brunetti

Dan Uccello

Panino’s Pizza, Chicago, IL

Gino Rago

Flo’s Pizzeria, Grand Rapids, MI

Brad Corbin

Panino’s Pizza, Park Ridge, IL

Sloopy’s Sports Café, Lakeside, OH

Leonardo Giordano

Dave Sommers

Mona Lisa Pizza, Staten Island, NY

Mad Mushroom, W. Lafayette, IN

Michael Reyes-Casanova Ynot Italian, Virginia Beach, VA

Scott Volpe

Fiamme Pizza, Tuscon, AZ

Sean Dempsey

Dempsey’s Brew Pub and Restaurant, Watertown, SD

Brian Hernandez

PMQ Test Kitchen, Oxford, MS

Daniel Lee Perea

PMQ Test Kitchen, Oxford, MS

2017 gold sponsors

2017 silver sponsors

ideazone-april18.indd 79

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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

FOLLOW YOUR HEART Made for pizzas, our dairy-free, soy-free vegan cheese options are delicious, melty and made in a solarpowered production facility. Popular with vegans and lactose-intolerant people across the globe, one bite will make you a believer in Follow Your Heart Vegan Cheese.

Products include Vegan Mozzarella Shreds, Vegan Pizzeria Blend Shreds, Vegan Parmesan Shreds, and Vegan Parmesan Grated.

818-348-3240, followyourheart.com

THE UHLMANN COMPANY The Uhlmann Company produces Heckers and Ceresota Unbleached flours for the finest pizza restaurants in Chicago and New York. Using only the best winter wheat with the highest quality protein, Heckers and Ceresota deliver the consistency and quality that professionals demand. Tony Gemignani’s team has won world championships for Chicago- and Detroit-style pizza using Ceresota flour. heckersceresota.com/foodservice/distributors

PDQ Self-serve kiosks will attract millennials, the largest pizza-eating demographic, to your store like never before. And according to industry statistics, they will order up to 30% more than orders placed by phone or at the counter. Revenue-generating self-serve kiosks also reduce labor costs, your biggest expense. And kiosks never call in sick, need time off, underperform or have a bad hair day!

877-968-6430, PDQpos.com

PIZZERIAMAGNETS.COM Successful pizzerias have long embraced the proven marketing power of customized magnets. On display 24/7, they attract customers to your pizzeria when the fridge is bare, that tired and hungry feeling ensues, a get-together is planned, or it’s office pizza day.

This affordable, highly visible, durable, and effective promotional tool engages new and returning customers.

Complimentary samples are available.

888-870-7172, pizzeriamagnets.com

80 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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VIDEO PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

R E L AT E D V I D E O

SYSCO Sysco offers “incredible pricing and incredible loyalty,” says Adam Greenberg, owner of Potomac Pizza in Washington, D.C. Sysco lends assistance through its corporate chefs, development of table tents, menu ideas and more. Greenberg says he’d rather buy 90% of his products from Sysco “versus wasting our time shopping everybody out every day and trying to save a few pennies here or there.”

V ID EO SPO N SO R ED BY WATCH T HE VIDEO AT PMQ.COM/SYS CO

AUTOFRY Chef Brian Hernandez recently met with Bess Wightman of AutoFry at the NRA Show to demonstrate the incredible features of the MTI-10X fryer. “With these machines,” Wightman says, “you can really just plug them in and start counting your profits.” Watch this exclusive video interview and demo to learn more!

WATCH T HE VIDEO AT PMQ.COM/AUTOFRYNRA

V ID EO SPO N SO R ED BY

VARIMIXER PMQ’s Brian Hernandez demonstrates the versality and power of Varimixer’s V60P 60-quart dough mixer. With its three-horsepower motor, variable speed transmission, agitator speeds of 60 to 120 RPMs and a hub that fits any standard No. 12 attachment, such as a cheese grater or meat grinder, the Varimixer V60P can fill all your mixing, grinding and grating needs.

WATCH T HE VIDEO AT PMQ.COM/ VARIMIXE R

V ID EO SPO N SO R ED BY

MARRA FORNI Marra Forni supplied 27 gorgeous, hand-tiled ovens for the pizza making competition at the 2017 Boston Pizza Festival. Competing pizzaioli, including those who had never used Marra Forni before, raved about the Italian ovens. Contest winner Fabio Cecere, owner of Rina’s Pizzeria, says he uses Marra Forni ovens at his own restaurant because it’s “the best brand” in the business.

WATCH T HE VIDEO AT PMQ.COM/MARRAFORNI V ID EO SPO N SO R ED BY

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

It’s time for an evolution...

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Pizza Bags Bakeable Tray • With Revolutionary ADVANCED BAKE TECHNOLOGY! • Prevents oven drips & spills.

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800.783.5343 • PerfectCrust.com 82 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA 3.3x4.875_PMQ_Ad_QtPg_4.4.14.indd 1

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PIZZA INDUSTRY BULLETIN BOARD

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

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84 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

PIZZA INDUSTRY BULLETIN BOARD

APPS Call us at 1-888-883-7190 www.menusforless.com

Guaranteed lowest cost Pizza Takeout Menu Printing!

5,000

8.5 x 11 full color glossy menus

$397

BAKING STONES

FIBRAMENT-D and FIBRAMENT PLUS BAKING STONES . www.bakingstone.com 708-478-6032....................NSF approved baking stones for all ovens by AWMCO B E V E R AG E S O N TA P

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Call us today at 302-378-7895 or e-mail us at products@boxtopinc.com to place your order!

CHEESE

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

CHEESE

COMPUTER SYSTEMS: POINT OF SALE

Pizza Technology that Delivers.

Authentic Flavor for Modern Menus

www.granburyrs.com

800.750.3947

CALL (800) 824-3373 OR VISIT SAPUTOUSAFOODSERVICE.COM Mozzarella I Provolone I Blue Cheese I Gorgonzola I Asiago I Romano

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Natural | Process | Portions | Specialty

Winona Foods, Inc.

WinonaFoods.com

920.662.2184

* * * * * * * * * *

Kiosks iPad POS Printers Cash Box Card Swiper Website Mobile Apps Fast Deposit Gift Cards Email

OrderSnapp.com

more than a POS, more than online ordering ( 888-402-6863 ) CHEESE SHAKER LIDS

Choosing a POS: right the first time speedlinesolutions.com/PizzaPOS 1-888-400-9185

CHICKEN

The BEST Pizza POS OS OS The Fastest POS on the Planet The Easiest to Learn & Operate Online Ordering / Rewards & Loyalty Mobile Reporting/Enterprise Complete EMV & PCI Compliance

877-968-6430 PDQpos.com

86 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

D I G I TA L S C A L E S

COFFEE EQUIPMENT

DOUGH

C O N S U LT I N G

DeIorio Foods

@DeIorios

blog.DeIorios.com

DeIorios.com

CUTTING BOARDS - EQUAL SLICE

DOUGH

DELICIOUS MADE-TO-ORDER BREAD AND PIZZA DOUGH Old World Tradition with New World Convenience.

DESSERTS

www.mamalarosafoods.com

To locate a distributor near you, call 734-946-7878.

Be Inspired. Be Creative. Be Original.

Red, White, and Blue Pizza with Nutella®

Fried Pizza Dough with Nutella®

Breakfast Pizza with Nutella®

DOUGH BOWLS

For more exciting recipes and tips about Nutella®, visit www.ferrerofoodservice.com or call (800) 408-1505 for more information.

Dessert is the last impression you’ll make on a customer.

Make it count.

Taste It Presents

908-241-9191 * www. tasteitpresents.com APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

FLOUR

DOUGH DIVIDERS/ROUNDERS

Exceptional pizza starts with exceptional flour.

Traditional Pizza Flours, Whole Grain Flours, Pizza Crust Mixes, Private Label Packaging, Proprietary Blending, Custom Development For more information call 1-800-553-5687 or visit www.baystatemilling.com

DOUGH PRESSES, ROLLERS

FOOD DISTRIBUTORS

D O U G H T R AYS/P RO O F I N G T R AYS

The Original Dough Box

MANY IMITATE. NONE CAN DUPLICATE • Fiberglass strength & durability outlast plastic trays • Secure stacking, won't bend or sag • 3 standard sizes with snap-on lids • Optional lids and dollies available

Bringing Italian Back to Pizza Exclusive North American Importer of Ciao Tomatoes and Caputo Flour 201-368-9197 | orlandofoods.com FOOD TRUCKS

• Dough Trays – extremely durable and airtight!

Outlasts All Other Dough Trays • Dough Tray Covers – designed to fit!

• Plastic Dough Knives – two ergonomic designs!

• Dough Tray Dollies – heavy duty!

Excellence in Customer service since 1955!

The preferred dough tray of the largest pizza companies in the world.

Buy direct from the manufacturer with over 25 years manufacturing in dough trays.

Call 800-501-2458 ........... www.doughmate.com ......... fax: 908-276-9483

PIZZA TRUCKS All Inclusive Package

We Build FoodTrucks

FLOUR, GLUTEN-FREE Scan for Demo

Premium Flours Make Gluten-Free Tasty & Easy!

Si Mendoza 713-277-4663 ILPrimopizzatx@gmail.com ILPRIMOPIZZATX.COM

Tel: 310-366-7612 E-mail: sales@authenticfoods.com Web: www.authenticfoods.com 88 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

00 FLOUR

FRYERS

Molino Pasini s.p.a. - Italy

Full line flours for Pizza, Fresh Pasta, Ready Mix for gnocchi Phone: 1-973-454-8534 +39 0376 969015 www.molinopasini.com - info@molinopasini.com FRANCHISING

Should You Franchise Your Restaurant?

Contact us today to receive your free video on “How to Franchise Your Business” and learn ® about one of the most dynamic methods of expanding your business in today’s marketplace.

F R A N C H I S E C O N S U LTA N T S 708-957-2300 • www.ifranchisegroup.com • info@ifranchisegroup.com

BE THE

KING OF

CHICKEN WINGS With AutoFry and MultiChef ventless technology you can serve hot delicious appetizers without the need for costly renovations.

Fully Automated • Convenient • Reliable • Safe • Affordable • Fully Enclosed For more information call 800-348-2976 or visit us online at MTIproducts.com • AutoFry.com • MultiChef.com Your Source for Ventless Kitchen Solutions for over 25 Years

FURNITURE/FIXTURES

Heat your Restaurant with SUNPAK® Outdoor Patio Heaters Wall or ceiling mounted, nothing on the floor Natural Gas or Propane Models Made in the U.S.A.

www.infradyne.com

888.317.5255

M A C H I N E R Y/ E Q U I P M E N T

APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

GLUTEN-FREE PRODUCTS

MAILING LISTS Scan for Demo

Reach More Hungry Customers with an Occupant List

Premium Flours Make Gluten-Free Tasty & Easy!

Tel: 310-366-7612 E-mail: sales@authenticfoods.com Web: www.authenticfoods.com

G L U T E N - FWR EHE OP LR OE DSUOC TMS E

&

OME & DELICIOUS

• Personalize for more effective campaigns • Save on postage

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™

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www.melissa.com/hungry 1-800-MELISSA

MANAGEMENT INSURANCE keep more of your hard earned dough!

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save time and increase profits!

www.timeforge.com 866.684.7191

MARKETING IDEAS

PIZZAPRO ..........................................Low cost pizza delivery insurance program Contact Julie Evans (717) 214-7616 ..................................www.pizzapro.amwins.com M A C H I N E R Y/ E Q U I P M E N T

1-800-426-0323

www.northernpizza.com

Ovens Mixers Prep Tables Walk-ins Parts Smallwares

MARKETING IDEAS

MAGNETS

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

MARKETING IDEAS

MIXERS

Pizza’s Great Storyteller

The Original Variable Speed Mixer

Radio-style stories to bring customers in.

Let pizza’s greatest storyteller make you a local pizza hero!

• Fully-produced 1-minute pizza stories

Varimixer Strong as a Bear.

Rix Quinn

Hear samples at PizzaTV.com/Rix M E AT TO P P I N G S

800-222-1138

www.varimixer.com www.varimixerusa.com

“Consistently Delicious!”

V6OP

mixer@varimixer.com • 14240 South Lakes Dr • Charlotte, NC

FOODSERVICE, PRIVATE LABEL AND RETAIL PRODUCTS

847-228-7070 • Elk Grove Village, IL • www.devancofoods.com PRESTIGE FOODS .....................314-567-3648................MEATTRADER@MSN.COM Low Closeout Pricing! Call for this week’s special. For Deals That Go To Your Bot-

MOISTURE-ABSORBENT TOPPINGS CONDITIONER/SUPPLIES

MONEY MANAGEMENT

Money to Grow Your Business MIXERS

Precision HD-60 Pizza Mixer 7-Year Unconditional Parts Warranty on all gears and shafts in the planetary and transmission!

Holdsbowl! art 80-qundles a Ha . bag 50 lb our! of fl

GrowthCapitalSolutions.com direct # (513) 601-3809 OLIVES THE WORLD`S LARGEST OLIVE AND OLIVE OIL PRODUCER

www.pizzamixers.com • 1-877-R-MIXERS

Pizza Package Includes: CL50 Ultra Veg Prep Machine, 2mm and 4mm slicing disc, 7mm grating disc, 10mm dicing kit disc holders, and dice cleaning kit

ACORSA USA 2200 FLETCHER AVE. SUITE # 702, FORT LEE, NJ 07024 Tel. 201-944-0474 ...... Fax # 201-944-1279 enrique.escudero@dcoop.es ... www.dcoop.es We offer a full line of Green Olives, Ripe Olives and Olive Oil from Spain for private label or branded. OU Kosher and BRC Certified. Inventory stored at 11 warehouses throughout the U.S.

ON HOLD MARKETING/PHONE SERVICES

800/824-1646 www.robotcoupeusa.com Heavy Duty MIXeRS RS

2-Year Warranty

robotcoupe-PizzaPackage-35x2.indd 1

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60 qt. Pizza Mixer handles 50 lb. bag of flour Direct gear drive transmission • Rigid cast iron construction

Globe Food Equipment Co. | www.globefoodequip.com APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

ON HOLD MARKETING/PHONE SERVICES

PIZZA BOXES

Your food. Our custom-printed boxes.

A winning combination.

Ten case minimums. Pizza, sub, slice, kids and other boxes available.

800-626-0828 | starpizzabox.com ONLINE ORDERING

PIZZA BOX LINERS

Dinerware Integration Online Mobile Ordering Solution for Restaurants

Dinerware

$99 Monthly imenutogo.com 0% Commission Go Mobile Today!

(718) 554-0524

Grow Your Business with the power of online ordering More Orders. Starting Now.

SliceLife.com/JoinNow or (844) 880-2346

PIZZA DELIVERY THERMAL BAGS

PIZZA BOXES

CUSTOMIZE YOUR PIZZA BOX Doing It The American Way! TAKE YOUR IMAGE TO THE NEXT LEVEL 7” to 36” Custom Boxes and Odd Sizes Available

UP TO 4-COLORS | NO PLATE FEES*

Rectangular Flat Bread Boxes Available

888.400.3455 ext.107 | wpackaging.net 2001 East Cooley Drive, Colton, CA 92324

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

PIZZA DELIVERY THERMAL BAGS

APRIL SPECIALS

High Qua lit y Pizza Tools

Made in Italy Since 1986

Phone 630-553-9135 sales@gimetalusa.com www.gimetalusa.com APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

PIZZA OVENS

PIZZA OVENS

Stone Deck, Pizza Dome, and Bakery

www.univexcorp.com Tel. 800-258-6358 Fax. 603-893-1249

EARTHSTONE OVENS, INC. 6717 San Fernando Rd..............Glendale, CA 91201 800-840-4915 ..........Fax: 818-553-1133 ..............www.earthstoneovens.com All units UI listed.

WWW.XLTOVENS.COM TO ORDER CALL (316) 943-2751 | TOLL-FREE: (888) 443-2751 | FAX: (316) 943-2769

WOOD STONE CORPORATION ...............Stone Hearth & Specialty Commercial Cooking Equipment .1801 W. Bakerview Rd ..................... Bellingham, WA 98226 TOLL Free 800-988-8103Fax: 360-650-1166.............. woodstone-corp.com PIZZA PANS

TRADITIONAL, FAST CASUAL, ARTISAN...

WE’VE GOT PIZZA COVERED VENTLESS IMPINGEMENT CONVEYORS, BATCH, AND ARTISAN BATCH OVENS

www.pizzatv.com

1-800-90TURBO | www.turbochef.com 94 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

PIZZA PANS

PIZZA SUPPLIES

Introducing

THE

PIZZA BUTLER!

Space-saving footprintEasy storage | Versatile Function Sturdy Contruction | Customizable

Call Manny at 718-894-1212 ext. 218 Order online at www.thepizzabutler.com PIZZA PEELS

PRINTING

PIZZA SUPPLIES

• Pizza Preparation and Delivery Products •

National Marketing, Inc.

www.nminc.com 800-994-4664

734-266-2222

Fax: 734-266-2121

Manufacturers’ Direct Pricing • Call or order online • We export

pmq.com/Recipe-Bank/ APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

R E F R I G E R AT I O N

SAUCE

Since 1915, The Neil Jones Food Company has been producing premium quality tomato and custom blend sauces. A family owned and operated corporation, we only pack from the freshest and finest vine-ripened California tomatoes. So whether you prefer classic #10 cans or new shelf-stable pouches, you will always get the very best in fresh packed tomato products from Neil Jones Food.

ROOM KEY ADVERTISING

HOTEL ROOM KEY ADVERTISING DIAL #600 from your room for In-Room SPEED DIAL Papa John’s ROOM DELIVERY to Your Business SCALES

PIZZAROOMKEYS.COM • 866-912-3539

Commercial weighing scales for restaurants, catering, delis, and other retail markets.

SAUCE

Pizza@YamatoCorp.com 262-236-0000 T E L E P H O N E E Q U I P M E N T/ S U P P L I E S / S E R V I C E

TA B L EC LOT H S

Updating your dining room is easy with our easy-care vinyl table covers … always made to your specs. Fabrics are also available by the roll.

You Top the Pizza, We’ll Top the Tables!

• • • •

372 colors and 65 mix-and-match patterns Covers are custom made within 2-3 weeks Available with velcro, umbrella holes or elastic for a perfect fit.

No minimums required

View and order patterns online at Americo-Inc.com

Call 1-800-626-2350 FREE SWATCHES!

601 East Barton | West Memphis, AR 72301

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PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

T E L E P H O N E E Q U I P M E N T/ S U P P L I E S / S E R V I C E

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APRIL 2018 | PMQ.COM

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PIZZA HALL OF FAME

Has your pizzeria been in business for 50 years or longer? If so, contact us at tracy@pmq.com.

PIZZA HALL OF FAME CELEBRATES 10 YEARS It might seem a brief span compared to the lengthy histories of our Pizza Hall of Fame (PHOF) inductees, but I’m proud to say this column is celebrating 10 years in 2018. Back in the Jan/Feb 2008 issue, PHOF, the brainchild of editor at large Liz Barrett, made its debut on the last page of the magazine, profiling Chicago’s historic Pizzeria Uno—and I’ve been in the privileged position to be the only writer for the column since its inception.

The dozens of interviews I’ve conducted for PHOF (many stretching to an hour or more) remain some of the highlights of my PMQ tenure. Yes, fitting decades of history into a mere one-page column is challenging; it takes hours to craft the perfect three or four paragraphs that tell their stories, but becoming a very small part of their success makes the effort worthwhile.

Because these stories aren’t just about pizza. These are tales of people, often immigrants or children of immigrants, realizing the

American dream. They inspire me—and, I hope, our readers—each month. After all, every one of these, from pen-and-paper old-school operations to megachains like Pizza Hut, has something in common: Each began humbly. No one started with 100 locations or a dedicated fan base or splashy ad campaigns. Sure, some had luck on their side.

Others had to explain to customers what the heck pizza even was. But, invariably, they overcame countless challenges and have thrived for so many years based on old-fashioned values: sheer will and hard work.

It has been my honor to share their stories. I hope one day PHOF will celebrate its own 50-year milestone, continuing to tell operators’ tales of pizza, persistence and passion. Thanks for reading these last 10 years.

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

98 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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Memory Lane On the Pizza Hall of Fame website (pizzahalloffame. com), avid fans share their heartwarming memories at historic pizzerias nationwide: We met at the original Poretta’s during the big snowstorm in 1967. It was the only place open, and my girlfriends and I were in there when a group of boys came in. We left and they followed us down the street...

We have now been married 46 years.

—Bud and Helen Stein I haven’t ever been to Fricano’s, and already it’s the best pizza I’ve ever had. We ordered it for my mother’s funeral and put one pie in her casket so she could enjoy it on her next journey. Once my brother-in-law ate half a Fricano’s pizza and hallucinated for four days.

He and Jerry Garcia fed Fricano’s to each other while jamming on “Truckin’.” What a long strange trip it was.

—Jon Wunrow I have been coming to Tony’s almost every year for my birthday, 51 years of great memories! My birthday isn’t complete without pizza. —Lisa L. Brady My father took my mother to Pica’s when they were dating in the 1950s, and now seven kids, 24 grandkids and five great-grandkids later, we all still get Pica’s…. the best pizza ever! —Cathy Sherlock Our first date was at Mario’s, Friday night GBHS Homecoming football game, October 1966. We have been married 46 years and still stop in when we are downstate. They treat us like family when we walk through the door. How many businesses strive for that kind of atmosphere today? Frank, Sergio and all the staff are carrying on a wonderful family tradition that will never go out of style. —Sharon Christman My first taste of pizza when I was 10 years old in 1957 was Frankie’s. I was hooked from then on. Have even ordered it from 800 miles away and had it shipped!

—David Thomason Thank you, Frank Sr. and Frank Jr., for sharing your great food and atmosphere for decades. I proposed to my wife 30 years ago in your restaurant [Mama Cozza’s]. I now live 100 miles away, but when I’m in town, I always stop in. —Kevin J. Mellin I worked for Mary’s [Pizza Shack] for 26 years, and it was a great experience I will never forget. It was like having another family, because that’s how they treated me. —Tony Grant JAN/FEB 2018 | PMQ.COM

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