During the two-day festival at the end of August, we always hold a series of educational and informational panel discussions. We have excerpts this week from “The Dough Whisperers” and the “3rd Wave Deep Dish/Pan” panels, held at The Salt Shed in Chicago.
Archives: Podcasts
Brian Tondryk from Bartoli’s in Chicago
When he got tired of his corporate job, Brian Tondryk decided to get into the pizza business, because his grandfather – Fred Bartoli – inspired him as a kid. Bartoli started Gino’s East in 1966 in Chicago. Tondryk had to talk to old timers, do his research and go back to his childhood to try to recreate the pies he remembered from the 1970s. He now has two Bartoli’s locations in Chicago serving both deep-dish and thin pizza.
Devin Bogdan from Smith & Lentz Brewery in Nashville
Devin Bogdan has worked in restaurants around the U.S., some that have received Michelin stars or James Beard awards. For the last four years, he’s been in the kitchen at Smith & Lentz Brewery, an East Nashville bar and restaurant with an ambitious menu, drawing upon the seasons. The pizza he has developed is truly remarkable, using several flours, an all-natural starter and a particularly high hydration.
Tony Scardino from Professor Pizza in Chicago
Tony Scardino is a child of the Chicago suburbs. His memories are of thin and crispy tavern style pies, but over the years, as he made his way around the kitchens of some of Chicago’s better restaurants, he got the pizza bug. The last few years have seen him and his Professor Pizza brand bouncing around Chicago, but always improving his craft. Today, his kitchen sits atop a building in the hot West Loop, where he makes three styles of pizza – and continues experimenting all of the time.
Luca Platania from Forza in Helsinki, Finland
Luca Platania has had a tough road getting to where he is. A brain tumor scare followed his move from Italy to Finland (he followed his wife back home), where he had to learn the language. Now, he’s got several locations of Forza in Finland, and Steve met up with him at his year-old space in Helsinki, where Luca showed off his two styles of pizza.
Chadwick Corcoran from Two Doughs in Agoura Hills, CA
When you start rolling and tossing dough at the age of five, you have some strong opinions and approaches to pizza making. Chadwick Corcoran sure does. In fact, he feels so strongly about both hand-stretched thins baked on the hearth, as well as pan-baked Sicilians, he decided to offer both at his suburban L.A. pizzeria, Two Doughs.
Rick Rosenfield, Co-Founder of California Pizza Kitchen and ROCA
Rick Rosenfield started his career with the Justice Department, going on to become a trial lawyer and prosecutor. But he and his business partner realized early on they wanted out of law, and into the restaurant business. They decided to create a pizza brand based on the California way of living – fresh produce, seasonal ingredients and unique (often misunderstood) flavors for 1980s America. The result was California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) a brand that has more than 200 locations worldwide. We talked about his origin story and how the brand developed its signature style of pizza.
“The Dough Whisperers” from Pizza City Fest L.A.
Our first panel discussion at Pizza City Fest L.A. this year was “The Dough Whisperers,” a panel including three of the leading dough experts in L.A. right now: Daniele Uditi (Pizzana), Andy Kadin (Bub & Grandma’s; dough supplier for Nancy Silverton/Mozza) and Evan Funke (Funke, Felix Trattoria, Mother Wolf). Moderated by our friend Noel Brohner, this slightly edited version includes a few of the audience questions as well. You can watch the entire discussion on our YouTube channel as well.
Salvatore LoCascio from Coda di Volpe in Chicago
Salvatore LoCascio has paid his dues. First in Italy, then in Chicago, working for the city’s best Neapolitan pizza makers. He’s now stationed at Coda di Volpe – one of only three VPN certified pizzerias in the city, where he’s adding a touch of his Sicilian heritage, and adding a new pizza to the traditional lineup.
Michael Schell from Schellz Pizza Co. in Los Angeles
Michael Schell and his wife operate out of a ghost kitchen in Hyde Park, which is just a few miles from Inglewood and SoFi stadium. It’s a pretty grim block, and it’s hard to spot, but once you do, you’ll be happy you arrived. Schell loved Detroit style pizza, and wanted to create something a little bit different, mimicking shokupan milk bread in Japan. It’s light, chewy and pretty dreamy when topped with sausage, red onions and giardiniera. Schellz Pizza Co. is destined for a brick-and-mortar sometime in the next year.
