5 Top Pizza Success Tips

Fast Casual Pizza 

There are several areas that are key to success and while all these areas are important any one is not the end all and be all to a successful formula. I’m sure you can think that local chain that has the worst pizza in town and yet you see their delivery vehicles everywhere you go. My own personal mystery was a pizza place in Brooklyn that was run by a guy with no personality that I am sure inspired the soup Nazi years later with his disrespect and rudeness to his customers. Aside from the pizza makers smoking while they made pizza, he would tell you to eat the unburnt part of the pie if you dared to complain. How about the places that are so far off the beaten path you need a guide to find them or better yet they have no name on the joint? You can’t make this stuff up but it gives one hope that there is room for all of us to succeed. I want to qualify this as my own personal opinion from working with, knowing and visiting with hundreds of pizza men and women all over the country. By no means is this THE BIBLE OF PIZZA or to be taken as law but it will give you a pretty good idea of what to concern yourself with if your new to the game, stale or in deep trouble.

1) Location, Location, Location-the best way is to be the only game in town or be in a tourist location where there are no other options available or the ones available are of no consequence due to being very expensive or a different and specialized category like a fish house.  Some the most successful places specialized in malls, theme parks, schools, military bases or small town USA.   

2) Make the best pizza known to man or there about. If you are making a really top notch product people will find you and not only that, people will talk. Word of mouth is the best advertising it has been said. The reason for this is that people will trust the opinion of friends and family over silly unfounded claims of the best pizza in town and such advertised in the local paper.

3) Be unique. Examples of this are everywhere but they may not seem apparent. Like making a Chicago pie where there never was one, having a wood burning brick oven, using insects as a topping or having a pizza drive through like OL Jose’s in Pineville West Virginia where they are using a revolving brick oven.

4) Be a social maniac. Take pride in being part of your community. Before there was social media, there were social men and women. These wonderful people actually cared about the people they met and considered customers as friends to share joys and sorrows with. One very moving example of this is when people would come to Goodfella’s Pizza in Staten Island on their way home from work in the days after 911 just to get out of the house and be with people who cared in a friendly and safe environment. There are many examples I can think of; like the guy who coaches the local little league, the girl who hosts local heroes with pizza parties, the place that supports boy scouts, the place that sponsors Special Olympics or the guys that collect donations for slices to feed the homeless. There are so many ways to build good will in a community and give back while earning respect and loyalty that I could write a book about it but you get the idea.  

5) Service. Run a tight ship that gives service and shows genuine care for the customer’s experience. I don’t know about you but when I am ignored, the host is not pleasant, the server acts like he is doing me a favor, the table is dirty when I am seated or my unfamiliarity with ordering and the menu is treated with impatience, you have lost me, and more importantly, any future income my patronage may have brought. This may seem like a given but if you are not on top of this and setting a good example for your crew it will never happen. A little thing like a smile or help and directions can go a long way in building a relationship with your customers. One terrible example I won’t forget was having my little daughter with me in a new town when she had to use a bathroom so we walked into a place and we were treated so rudely I swore I would never visit that place. I understand the old “Bathrooms are for paying customers” routine but sometimes being human and having discretion can earn you a great deal of loyalty. In other words, if it isn’t costing you anything to be kind-always be kind. Believe it or not but this also includes salesmen wasting your time. Those salesmen are not only people but potential customers with family and friends that also eat.

While no list will guarantee your success, if you follow these points your odds will greatly be increased and if you earnestly follow point 5 you will contribute to a better world by treating your fellow citizens with courtesy. Happy pizza my friend and best wishes.

Pizza Concept Trends

An Exciting Time For Pizza

The New Wave of Entrepreneurs have hit the ground running.

Fast casual, locally sourced, artisan pizza, organic and build your own are the buzz words being tossed about and of course there is the "Chipotle of Pizza" dream being expressed by the media but some ingredients are universal in the latest "Gold Rush" of pizza. First and foremost is the idea of building your own or designing your own pizza. Although it's not  a new idea to such Industry standards as Goodfella's from Staten Island New York which in known for it's Vodka pie, the open counter display of ingredients through a glass partition where the customer choose the toppings, thus "building" his own pizza" is now the predominant part of many of the new concepts.  The artisan part of pizza making is being reinterpreted to mean choose your toppings and hand made instead of hand made dough which is then hand stretched and cooked by a skilled pizza man in an authentic brick oven but customers are not that choosy yet as the competition is still evolving. Speed is foremost at this time but is not making it necessary to sacrifice product at places using the revolving brick ovens to cook hand tossed dough at such  an amazing rate of speed and consistency that it would make a Neapolitan Pizza Man smile. Organic ingredients are a bonus for some places looking to offer a healthier pizza, while local growers are being utilized as an incentive to be part of the community. Trendy places with exciting themes are taking the place of the old mom and pop slice places and offer somewhere different from the typical Pizza Franchise to take the family on pizza night. With the market share of fast casual pizza increasing by leaps and bounds it is anyone's guess as to who will be the "Chipotle of Pizza". Regardless of who dominates the market it is a win-win for all pizza lovers. 

The Bronx is Burning! New York Brick oven Company Brings Inferno to the Bronx

The Bronx is Burning! View this email in your browser

New Revolving Brick Oven Installed at "The Bronx is Burning" in NYC NYC Fireman installs New York Brick Oven Company's Revolving Brick Oven The soon to open Pizza Place will be featuring the Inferno Series oven to handle expected demand. Talk in the big apple is centered around the controversially named eatery which has been under fire since  putting it's hat in the ring with a name that is still a sore spot with local politicians who remember the term from the hostile environment of the Bronx during the 1970'S. But as soon as the doors open and the pizza starts flying all complaints will fall by the wayside and pizza harmony will prevail. Stay tuned for more data and the opening date.

The New York Yankee Pizza. Battle for the pizza of a city.

It's all about the Pizza- Oven in Fast Casual Pizza

Revolving deck brick ovens can be decorated to go with any style as seen at this Greek Tavern,

When you have a pizza place, it's best to have a great oven, so why not make it a showpiece? The oven is your main equipment item and if it is a brick oven you might as well make it part of the show. Fire and pizza men busy at making pies at masterful creation of art enhances the dining experience.

"You can use traditional brick, stucco, tile, copper, brass or stone to design an oven in your own taste with your own flair" said Scot Cosentino from the New York Brick oven Co. pictured above in front of a coal burning oven.

If your going to build a real brick oven, it's silly not to take advantage of the aesthetics and add to the ambiance of your establishment you worked so hard to create.

So before you put your concept together for the fast casual market, a remodel or a neighborhood bistro, take a little time to incorporate your brick oven into the space and proudly display it for all to see.

Fast Casual Pizza and Revolving Brick Ovens

With the Fast Casual pizza industry exploding across the nation and new concepts for Brick Oven Pizza literally springing up almost daily it will be great to see which  concepts dominate the competition. The New York Brick Oven Company's revolving brick oven Inferno series has been drawing a lot of attention and is already in full use in such places as the award winning Goodfella's Brick Oven Pizza of New York and the Radius brew pub of Emporia Kansas. Brew Pubs and pizza are a natural combination and compliment each-other well. Many of the new chains are switching over from conventional fixed deck ovens to revolving ovens to handle fast production while maintaining a standard brick oven pizza. The mainstay of the new fast casual pizza revolution is fast pizza made with fresh ingredients that the customer chooses. Having an oven that can maintain the correct temperature without the need for highly skilled labor is where the New York Brick Oven Company's revolving deck brick ovens shine. These brick ovens are capable of being fueled by wood, gas or a combination thereof. The fact that the owners of New York Brick Oven have over 40 years making pizza between them and are partnered with Kuma Forni of Italy speaks volumes about them and having their revolving brick ovens all over the world speaks more.

Press Release New York Brick Oven Co. Revolving Deck Brick Ovens

For Immediate Release:                                                  

New Pizza Trend: Revolving Deck Brick Ovens

New York, New York (December 14, 2013)-The New YorkBrick Oven Co. company introduces its Inferno Series Revolving Deck Brick Ovens. Pizza has become one of the fastest growing segments in the Fast Casual market with gourmet brick oven pizza leading the way. Industry leaders such as 3 time International Champion Goodfella’s Brick Oven Pizza of Staten Island New York is at the forefront of this new technology, replacing their existing 8 Ft. traditional brick oven with a revolving deck oven. Goodfella’s co-owner Andrew Scudera said “This oven out produces a regular brick ovens hands down. Not only that but it saves labor and makes a consistent product every time which is very important in a busy place. This is the biggest innovation I have seen yet in the pizza industry during the last 20 years”. The Inferno series comes in a wide range of sizes and configurations to suit such places as a small pie making bistro to a high volume location featuring pick-up and delivery in addition to dine-in. The main draw to these new ovens is that they eliminate the need for skilled labor to constantly rotate pizza and understand the mechanics of cooking in a traditional fixed cooking surface brick oven. Once the pie is placed on the rotating brick surface it spins around the oven and is cooked completely and consistently. The innovative patented design feature of an electric heating element below the cooking surface ensures the surface is always hot and augments the wood or gas fire capabilities of the oven while reducing initial start-up time to reach the ideal operating temperature.

Contact: New York Brick Oven Co. www.brickovensforsale.com

Marc Cosentino

phone: 1-800-oven- 053                  email: nybrickovens@gmail.com