Pizza Today - July 2021 - 46

to make it in small batches because it does
go bad rather quickly. If the staff member
making the pasta is inexperienced, it will be
high in labor cost with a big potential for
product loss in failed attempts. With that
said, if you can accomplish it and push it out
properly on social media to create a call to
action, even if it's just a special for one night,
you can make a substantial impression to your
audience that your pizzeria high end.
When it comes to how to make fresh pasta
and deciding what pasta is right for your
restaurant, whether it's traditional ravioli,
multicolor, or any variation of the filling, do
what you love. If you love mushrooms, do that.
If you live for brown butter lobster ravioli,
make that. If you are extruding, make the
shapes you love. If Italian wedding soup done
right with fresh ditalini is your thing, make
that. If you don't like anything other than a
basic cheese ravioli, then, by all means, start
simple and have fun with it. Do something
that you will be proud of because you're
going to because it will be a signature dish
representing YOU. If you're willing to go
through the work of making fresh pasta, DO
WHAT YOU LIKE, NOT WHAT YOU
THINK YOUR CUSTOMER EXPECTS.
Expectation = cliched.
Healthy Pasta
Another straightforward option is the
pasta primavera. Choose flavorful, healthy
vegetables that will attract vegans and nonvegan
pasta lovers. Artichokes, plum tomatoes,
squash and other seasonal vegetables you
actually enjoy, can make for a high mover
item. Sautee it with a no-cheese marinara, and
you will have a vegan hit. Go heavy on the
garlic and olive oil with proper seasoning, and
you'll have non-vegans ordering this as well.
If selling to vegans isn't for you, I'd advise
you to realize they are the fastest-growing
food demo today, and they have friends and
family. If a group is deciding where to eat and
your restaurant has no vegan options, you are
immediately out of the running. Just a few
vegan items will ensure you get larger orders
when dietary restrictions play a role. If you
don't believe you have a vegan clientele, you
are incorrect. You do. They just don't eat at
your place because you haven't given them
options. So, start with this pasta.
Baked Pasta
The best pizzeria home run for
a simple entree is baked pasta. Use
your pizza oven for more than pizza
and stay in your wheelhouse. A small
six-inch baker bowl or foil to-go
bowl with a tube or shell pasta is
what you'll need. Blend this with a
marinara or a cream sauce or a mix
of the two, add cheese on top, bake it
like a pizza, and you are set.
Meatless baked pasta is a universal
crowd favorite because it appears
hearty but not overly heavy. Plus
food cost is great on this item. A
baked pasta done this way is ideal
for catering. Now, the big boys of
pizza caught on and started doing
this themselves in their own baked
trays a few years back. But here's
one thing that they did not do; fresh
julienned or chopped basil on top.
The larger chains don't want a lot
of knife work in their kitchen, but
that doesn't throw you off, now, does
it? When you put fresh basil on top
of a pasta that it complements, i.e.,
not an alfredo, it instantly shows the
customer that this was made in-house
and is not a cookie-cutter factorymade
meal. It's incredibly simple,
but it's true. Fresh basil, real basil, is
a simple statement that resonates.
Dried herbs do not. You can, by all
means, use them in whatever sauce
mixture you have, but the key is
showing off something that could not
have come in frozen. Fresh herbs will
always convey that.
Whatever pasta you choose, go for
flavor first, a flavor you love, with a
story you'll want to convey. Then amp
up the look and presentation, and
you'll attract a customer not seeking a
discount but instead a return visit.
MIKE BAUSCH is the owner of
Andolini's Pizzeria in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
46 / PIZZATODAY.COM / JULY 2021
https://www.fieramilano.it/ http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - July 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - July 2021
