Pizza Today - October 2020 - 16

BUILDING BLOCKS

NICK BOGACZ

Tips for a New Menu
Utilize items that will excel

I have the best pizza in the city!"
Or at least that's what most
people say when they open a new

shop.
I never did. I just let the pizza speak
for itself. Of course, over the last eight
years and with the help of supremely
talented people, our pizzas racked up a
number of awards - and now we can
show off in our marketing.
So, how can you turn a boast into the
truth? It's probably not going to happen the day you open your new store,
but these tips will get your menu on its
way.
When you hear a Billy Joel song
on the radio, you know it's Billy Joel.
Similarly, when people bite into our

pizza, I want them to know it's our
pizza. We're unique.
While most towns have a handful of large-scale vendors that almost
every pizzeria uses for ingredients, you
shouldn't. A lot of large distributors sell
products from their own labels, which
is why a lot of pizza tastes the same.
Find a smaller Italian-focused distributor, one that very few or, even better, none of your rivals are using. You're
on your way to that Billy Joel pizza.
Dough, sauce, cheese and pepperoni - get these correct first. You
can have plans for other pies, but you
have to nail the basics.
I recommend using a "tasting panel"
of friends and family. Before we settled

on the ingredients that would be
the basis for many of our pies,
it took me three dough recipes,
hours with the "sauce lady," a
bunch of cheese samplings and
even more pepperoni picking.
You can grow from there, relying
on your tasting panel for banana
peppers, olives, spices, appetizers
- anything.
Talking about the basics, if this
is your first shop or you're unsure
about your culinary skills outside
of pizza, stick with what you
know. There's no need to come up
with 30 wing sauces or deep fry
every vegetable you can find for
an appetizer. First and foremost,
customers want good pizza.
It's fantastic if you can produce
a bunch of specialty pies from the
start, but maybe you can't. The
next best thing is to look at established pizzerias. Use their menus
for inspiration. See a pie you like?
You don't need to steal the recipe,
but you can put your own spin on
the style. Over time, your creativity will catch up with you.
Don't overdo it. Inspect your
kitchen and prep area and
understand what you're capable of
cooking.
Like steak on a pizza? What if
you have nowhere to prepare it?
Want to offer lasagna? What if it
takes too much time to make?
If an item is a headache, cut it.
You want your menu to be easy
to execute so your kitchen runs as
efficiently as possible.
At that point, your shop is open
with a new menu and great pizza.
Next month, we'll begin Marketing 101. ■

NICK BOGACZ is the founder and president of Caliente Pizza & Draft House in Pittsburgh. Instagram: @caliente_pizza

1 6 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / O C T O B E R 2 0 2 0

016_PIZ_1020_Nick.indd 16

9/9/20 9:04 AM

http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM

Pizza Today - October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - October 2020