The Oven is HERE!

Our baby is here!  Enzo had to learn how to operate a forklift in order to get that baby into the restaurant.

Publish Post

Washington Business Journal wrote about us!

http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/02/22/newscolumn3.html

I think you need a subscription to read the whole thing, though.

OFF SHE GOES!

HERE SHE IS!  The oven is all built and has boarded the ship as of today.  This picture was taken in Italy just before it was taken by the freight company. It will take about 3-4 weeks for it to get here.  We can't hardly wait.  Meanwhile, the work at the restaurant is going full speed.  Thank you Alex and Julio for doing such great job.  

3FORM

How amazing are these glowing 3-form panels? Made from recycled resin and backlit by LED lights, they are absolutely stunning.  3form makes all kinds of installations from this material. We are ordering several large (4x4 feet) wall light fixtures for the restaurant, similar to these. 

They also make sheets with real dried flowers or bamboo sealed inside and we're ordering some of them also.

RUNNING INTO TROUBLE WITH THE WOOD-FIRED OVEN

So, I went to the county inspection  office yesterday to see what they think about our construction plans.  Turns out, it is a big deal to have an Italian wood-fired oven installed.  They want me to pay $4,500 to have it inspected by UL (Underwriters Labs).  Ouch!  That oven ends up costing us about $15,000 without installation.  It's a lot, but we don't want to buy any other one, because Forno Napoletano ovens bake absolutely the best pizzas, even in Naples. They have a special low-dome construction and excellent heat insulation. 

UPDATE

Today we met with the architect and ordered our oven.  Our oven manufacturer hired an artist in Naples to re-create our logo on the outside of the oven.  The oven itself will be bright red. Since the oven is giant, we will need to take out the entire front of the restaurant to get it in with a forklift. And then re-build it.  Can you imagine! Oh, and the sign is up!

Trip to NAPLES - SEPTEMBER 2009 - part 4: Pizzeria Dal Presidente

This pizzeria is supposed to be one of the best. They claim it's Bill Clinton's favorite place in Naples, that's where it got it's name from.  Enzo apprenticed there few years back.  He was lucky to get that experience -  they taught him  a lot about the dough making process, as well as showed him how to make stuffed rice balls (arancini or palle di riso).  I got pizza with prociutto, arugula and parmesan, and Enzo got a Margherita con Filetti (fresh cherry tomatoes instead of sauce).  The pizza was good.  Not transcending.  I can't say anything bad about it, but something was out of balance.  The crust was just a tad too thick and too dry.  The toppings were great.  The staff - friendly.  They let me take some videos to "mettere langoppo Youtube" (put on Youtube).  It is fascinating how fast they hand-stretch those pizzas and how elegant their movements are.  The videos are on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-2yHYXZBfo