Fast Casual Pizza Franchise Secret they Don't want You to Know

Pizza Baking Temperatures for Brick Ovens

Every body loves pizza and it the word evokes a completely different picture depending on where your from and the type your used to eating. So what does a different temperature do to the dough and what temperature should you bake at?

Brick Oven Pizza

Well this can be a loaded question depending on who you ask. That being said I always feel that any pizza is better than no pizza so here are some observations based on using the same dough(which is a mixture of semolina and flour) baked in the same revolving brick oven at several different temperatures.

One: we bake at about 650 which takes about 4 minutes and allows the top of the pizza adequate time to dry while the dough has time to set up and bake slow and even. This allows for a very consistent crust with a chewy texture and softer consistency for your outer crust with a nice bottom cook similar to the smooth New York Style type of pizza which is usually baked in the 500-600 degree range. This temperature is ideal for heavy toppings and multiple toppings or heavy sauce pies since it allows for drying of the extra moisture associated with this type of pie.

Two: We bake at our favorite temperature of about 740 degrees which takes about 2 and a half to 3 minutes bake time.  This happens to be our choice for what we call a New York Brick Oven Pizza. At this temperature your getting a consistently golden colored crust across the bottom of your pie and a slightly crisper outer crust that has time to rise and set up. This pizza is best when evenly topped without overloading the pie with toppings to allow for some drying of ingredients such as roasted peppers or a high moisture content fresh mozzarella.This temperature also creates a pie that is well suited for pick up and delivery.  At this temperature you can still make a well done pie that is not burnt or charred or covered with the black blisters of the next category.

Three:This is the hottest Temperature category and the traditional Neapolitan pizza comes in this range. Using the same dough as before we get a different type of pizza here because the temperature is so high that you get a quick delicate rise of the crust. The dough is airy and the traditional charring occurs creating a bottom with uneven very dark spots and an outer crust that is charred and blistered. Toppings need to be very light and sparse as you usually see in this pizza due to short cooking time and intense top heat. Also the lighter crust consistency and lack of bake time to evaporate moisture in this pizza makes it not well suited for pick up or delivery since it will get soggy very fast. Traditionally Neapolitan style pizza is made from a very fine flour and greater hydration content and would result in a much lighter pizza than the ones tested, this type of pizza requires a knife and fork to eat because it get floppy quick.

Regardless of bake time each pie was very well received and enjoyed thoroughly by the participants in this project.  Depending on your location you can visit many types of pizza places using many kinds of ovens and dough and then begin to narrow down the type of pizza you would like to make from the type that you think you and your customers would enjoy. Of course you will have to experiment a bit to create your own recipe and see what temperature, moisture contentand toppings work best with the oven you choose but that is half the fun of it. Happy Pizza to you.

How to Stretch Pizza Dough

Pizza Stretching!

How to stretch a pizza dough is a fantastic introduction to making pizza by the New York Pizza School

Making Perfect Pizza with a Revolving Deck Brick Oven In Vegas vs. a Crapshoot

Fast Casual Pizza, Fast Casual Pizza, it's on all the modern day gold miners tongues. Places like Live Basil. Chipotle, Blaze, Spinfire, Pizza Rev, Uncle Maddio's, Revolver and the don't forget the big boys about to jump ship over to fast casual-Pizza Hut and Dominos. Now along with all these players are the dozens and dozens of start ups who envision being the next McDonalds of pizza. How do you get the odds in your favor with so much competition? How do you stand out in the crowd? What will make you better, more efficient and able to fight the big boys? Well one way a perennial favorite in New York did it, was by making an incredible pizza in wood burning Revolving Brick Ovens. The competition is fierce in New York City with pizza places coming and going on every corner year after year so when a Place like Goodfella's Brick Oven Pizza has it's 21st birthday it really is cause for celebration. "Staying ahead of the game while maintaining the integrity of your pizza and always streamlining production is key" said world champion pizza maker and co-founder of Goodfella's Pizza. A game changer for them was the addition of a revolving deck wood burning brick oven which allows for perfectly uniform cooking of each pizza while eliminating the drawbacks of traditional brick ovens such as: hot spots, cold spots, hard to regulate temperatures and unskilled pizza makers. The New York Brick Oven Company will be demonstrating there Inferno series revolving brick ovens at the this years Pizza Expo in Las Vegas Nevada at the end of March in booth 231 for those interested.
The next key "ingredient" is just that: you have to use fresh ingredients these days. The pizza eating public is not the same uninformed group as it used to be and they know they have a lot of choices now as to where they want to spend their hard earned money. Why would they buy frozen dough, sauce froma jar or even worse a sauce made from reconstituted powder. Then you have your cheese. Processed, hardened oils are a thing of the past and almost any supplier can give you access to a premium fresh mozzarella so why not use it. Produce is now being purchased from local growers when feasible and helps the community while ensuring a fresh product. That being said you need a little understanding of how to best assemble your ingredients to make a good pie so you can read up on it, watch videos, experiment or take classes from a place like the Pizza School of New York which turns out top notch pizza makers from around the world(the training is priceless in the course of a career).
Once you have that mastered, you need a business model to build your restaurant after. In this case unless you have experience it can't hurt to go out and see what the successful fellows are doing and then put your own spin on it by adding your own flare or style. A good idea is to avoid head on competition till you get your feet wet and gain some experience running your own place. I say this because if you start in a place with little or no competition you have a better chance of carving out your own niche and drawing customers without going head to head with major brand recognition, huge marketing budgets and tremendous buying power which can effect final costs and offers to your customers.
The pizza game can be tremendously fun and rewarding but is not without a lot of very hard work, knowledge and skill. Simple enough to say now go and make it so.

Scot Cosentino of Goodfella's Pizza with his Vodka Pie Sensation

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

Pizza Equipment-The Brick Oven is the Show

Any business requires an investment and unless your a big wall street firm or the Federal Reserve and have the ability to just "print" money, your probably on a budget and are looking to save money in any and all areas as you build. That being said, we continually get customers calling for a Revolving Brick Oven as a last minute item. Not only that but too often the request for the dimensions goes along with "I only have this much space left for the oven".

That would be like an auto mechanic building a garage and at the last moment trying to decide where his lift is going or a dentist trying to decide where to put his chair after designing the office. You get the picture. If pizza is your game then your oven is your star player and the team is built around his performance and abilities. That means you build around your oven. If it is brick oven pizza your making and if your actually using a brick oven as Goodfella's Brick Oven Pizza in Staten Island does then you want to show it off and use it as a showpiece in your design. The authentic look and the activity of making pizza enhance the dining experience so why would you hide your oven? Your oven placement is key to your production also and that needs to be considered for placement too. The bottom line is design you place around the oven as focal point and the key to your delivering a great product with enough room for your workers and a good flow to and from your kithen and dining room. Happy pizza making.

The pleasure of cooking in a Revolving Deck Brick Oven

Having cooked pizza in a conventional Brick oven for 20 years I was skeptical at first but the past couple of years are an eye opener. It is human nature to "get used to" just about any circumstance we are in and the fear of change is always powerful. When I first heard of the revolving deck oven I dismissed it as a new fad but on examination it made sense especially with the constant heat provided by gas, wood and an industry first-an electric heating element below the cooking surface. The New York Brick Oven Co.'s Inferno series Revolving Deck Brick Oven is the industry leading innovation that takes all of the pain out of operating a brick oven. Moreover it makes it simple and removes the skilled labor aspect from your bottom line. No more having to keep your pizza man's head in front of a sweltering oven, no longer having to constantly turn and shuffle your pies to avoid burning from hot spots or uneven cooking from cold spots, no longer having tie up an employee to "work" the oven.

It's now as easy as just placing your pie on the rotating cooking surface, letting it rotate a couple times around and then taking it out perfectly cooked on all sides and the bottom. "A life saver" in the word's of Andrew Scudera who is co-owner of the original world famous Goodfella's Brick Oven Pizza on Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island New York and winner of several International Pizza titles. The hottest trend in the industry is one the new chains in fast casual and local gourmet pizza places are jumping on around the United States. Speed and high quality production are the watch words for these new ovens and when you add consistency and labor savings you get a combination that is hard to beat and a no-brainer for the savvy pizza operator.

Latest Pizza Trend: Revolving Deck Brick Ovens

                   

  New York Brick Oven Co.

The New York Brick 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 AndrewScudera 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 cooking temperature.

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

Marc Cosentino

Revolving Deck Brick Oven is the new "Easy Bake Oven"

The New York Brick Oven Co. is offering what is now the industry leader in brick ovens with their Inferno series. Fast casual, Brick Oven, Neapolitan and traditional New York Style Pizza are all being cooked in the new Revolving Deck Brick Ovens which are super user friendly and cost effective since they do not require a skilled pizza man to work the oven, manage the temperature and constantly rotate and re-position the pies as  you would have to do in a fixed cooking surface brick or deck oven. Once the pie is placed on the revolving brick cooking surface(think turntable) it slowly revolves and is cooked to perfection on all sides without any further attention. The Pizza School of New York uses one of these ovens to train it's students from around the globe on the latest trend in the pizza industry so that they can be ahead of the curve with latest technology. Look for these amazing ovens in the new fast casual pizza chains springing up across the country.

The Original Vodka Pizza that Became a National Trend

Back in 1993 at the Original Goodfella"s Brick Oven Pizza on Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island New York we created the "VODKA PIE" by a stroke of luck one night. My little brother Scot was enjoying some Penne Pasta with Vodka sauce and dipping some Italian bread in it when he asked " I wonder how a pizza would be with this sauce?" So off to the pizza station we went and began the test. Fantastic we thought but our customers-predominantly Italian did not agree at first. '' What is this orange stuff on the pizza?" "That doesn't look good". "What the hell is that?" and other choice phrases were used to question not only the pizza but our mental soundness. As usual we persisted with sampling and taste tests and it started catching on but once Rudy Giuliani, who was the Mayoral candidate at the time, tried it and started talking about the Vodka Pie at Goodfella's on the TV and radio it went wild! Not only that but it won the best pizza in the East and ultimately the coveted "Best Pizza in America" Wow! Then more TV from around the country and as the saying goes- the rest was history. Back in the early 90's before the internet if you can imagine, gourmet pizza cooked in a wood burning brick oven was a completly unknown animal and the term fast casual was not even coined but pizza is life and word got around so that everyone can enjoy it.

Lady Ga Ga pizza

From the NY Yankee Good luck pizza and the World Famous Vodka Pie to  the lady Ga Ga Pizza, the boys at the Original Goodfella's  Brick Oven Pizza on Hylan Blvd. in Staten Island NY are always having  fun making delicious and sometimes entertaining pizzas like the Lin Sanity pie.  The incredible smell of the revolving wood burning brick oven and the fresh homade ingredients take you away to mom's kitchen and memories of the first time you smelled a genuine fireplace as a kid. An always genuinely happy to see you staff that values people and has given back to community in so may ways over the past decades makes you feel right at home so come on down and taste some of NY's Finest(one of the founders is a former New York City Police Officer). Happy pizza to you!