Pizza Today - August 2017 - 59

One of the biggest challenges Jerrier
has faced is regional preference. Folks
in Houston aren't big fans of Dallas, so
launching a company that was based in
Dallas was challenging. But hiring a
local -- Johnson -- and creating a
menu specifically designed for Houston -- with pastas, more vegetables and
some Gulf seafood -- has helped Cane
Rosso thrive in Houston. Three units
opened within a five-month window,
which Jerrier admits put a strain on
capital and human resources.
"We're finally getting our feet under
us in those locations," he says. "Whereas the Cane Rossos in Dallas are stable
and going gang busters within 90 days
of opening, it's a little longer on the
outside markets."
The newest location -- located near
the Dallas Cowboys training facility
-- will bring in tourists and locals alike.
"We've got our hands full for the rest
of '17 with the opening of two restaurants," Jerrier says. "We're continuing
to get Austin and Houston where we
want them. I think for '18, we're going
to start looking for opportunities for
'19. We'll have 10 operating units --
plus three ice cream units, which is a
company we bought at the end of 2016.
We are going to continue to roll those
out. We try to tag them close to our
units. ... Once we prove we can stably
operate within the state of Texas -- we
think we have documented systems
and a lot of the infrastructure that can
support a little bit farther reach -- in
2019 I'd like to see us go outside of
Texas. We get calls all the time from
people wanting us to open one here or
there. We're not going to New York
or places like that where it's super
crowded. We're set up to franchise,
but we haven't. We have a franchise
program, but we haven't offered it to
anybody. We're just not ready to do that
yet. ... We should exit this year at $22
or $23 million. Kind of our roadmap is
let's get to $50 (million) and see what
happens." n
MANDY WOLF DETWILER is

editor at Pizza Today.

managing

TOP LEFT: MARKET SALAD with arugula, mixed greens, tomatoes, avocado, corn, red onion, pistachios & Italian
dressing BOTTOM LEFT: SALUMI MISTI with cured meats, housemade mozzarella, spicy pecorino, honeycomb,
Calabrian chiles & crostini

ZOLI'S 2.0
After developing Cane Rosso's full-service brand to the point that it is ready for expansion,
what's next for purveyor Jay Jerrier? The rebirth of a traditional New York-style concept called
Zoli's that Jerrier had opened but shuttered after his former landlord decided to redevelop
the land.
Jerrier, whose Neapolitan concept earned our 2017 Independent Pizzeria of the Year
award, grew up on the East Coast and had a staff member who'd been making traditional
pizza for more than 30 years. Dreaming up Zoli's gave them the opportunity to play with
square pies, garlic knots and different offerings not found at Cane Rosso. "We joke about it,"
he says. "We say if you hate Cane Rosso, you'll love Zoli's."
Why not just stick with the Neapolitan pizza that has brought Jerrier success? "Partly
because we love that style of pizza," he says. "Neapolitan pizza is really divisive. A lot of
people say 'you know, this pizza sucks. There's not enough toppings. It's too wet.' We wanted
to make the kind of pizza that we love, too."
Zoli's uses a deck oven, and they're playing with stromboli and Sicilian pies. "Everything
that you can't get (at Cane Rosso), you can get here."

A U G U S T 2 0 1 7 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / 5 9

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Pizza Today - August 2017

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