Soon enough!! Due to time constraints, there won’t be any immediate changes, however towards the end of summer we should be ready to unveil some changes.
Between now and then I will be learning / practicing my pizza making skills. Gotta admit, I’ve never made pizza professionally so it’s a new experience for me.
Jr. as someone who just started, [ one year ] making pizza at home it is a daunting task. I suggest getting the book, " The Elements of Pizza " by Ken Forkish. I have a wood burning oven making Neapolitan pizza at 900*.The key obviously is the dough, out of the three methods [ after dozens of tries ] I’ve settled on the" Biga" version over the " poolish " version or the basic straight version. Good luck.
Don’t know if it’s of any interest, but you can take classes with Chef Roberto Caporuscio of Keste. And there are options in terms of the duration of the classes, too.
I know Roberto from a zillion years ago when he landed in Ridgewood at A Mano - that was eye-opening, life-changing pizza (for me). To say he’s the real deal is an understatement! And if you’re not interested in the classes, you can likely meet him at the Fancy Food Show at the end of this month if you’re going.
ETA that I just read an article about McCloone’s new spot in AP and it mentions “thin-crust pizza taught to kitchen staff by Enzo Ferrante, a certified Italian Master Pizzaiolo.” So there are probably a bunch of pizzaiolos who do this.
Congrats. I was always a supporter of Eddie and I’m sure you will do great in that space ! I’ll be sure to come in
Awesome news, congratulations!
They are in my rotation so will be stopping by.
Please keep the bar pie and the drunken nonna as well as Porte and egg hero.
I’ll put my other menu requests in later. lol.
Wishing you much success!
So Shake Shack not open yet in Freehold it’s in training mode.Traffic in that lot becoming more like a demolition derby every day.Can’t imagine how much worse it will get once it opens
If you want to really compete fast on a commercial level, it might be best to invest money and get consultants who have started and worked at pizzerias before.
Has anyone checked out The Steak and The Egg outdoor 5 course dining event in Millstone? They are on IG for rez and menu deets. Pretty surroundings while group dining.
Haven’t dined there yet, but here’s some background on the guy who’s running it: https://www.app.com/story/entertainment/dining/2023/06/13/new-jersey-home-cook-ryan-walker-master-chef-fox-millstone-township/70306064007/
Oh we read all about him and the plans beforehand. The group we joined was outstanding.
It’s a very cool concept, for sure.
Sprouts build your own sandwich $4.99-$6.99 is a daily deal.
You will also meet very friendly ex Sickles employees working every dept.
To clarify a bit, Eddie and I are partners in the restaurant, he hasn’t gone anywhere. What is hopefully gone is absentee ownership backing Eddie which has severely hampered his ability to "grow’. You will start noticing some small changes soon, culminating to our “soft open - full rebrand” after the summer.
(@CurlzNJ)
Thank you both very much. I actually have an excellent pizza maker at the restaurant who is teaching me “our” technique. Honestly much of the food isn’t going to change, Eddie has done a pretty good job given his previous restraints.
For now, my time is being spent, learning and observing especially in the kitchen. I’m a firm believer in earning the respect, especially the kitchen staff. Kitchen staff have a slightly more cooperative attitude towards management if they know management can jump in and do their job at the drop of a hat.
My father taught me early in this business, make sure the staff always knows, they are ALL replaceable. Earn their respect, and they will be very loyal. That’s my only focus right now is teambuilding.
@Rooster Thanks for sharing. Sal at The Skillet is a super nice guy. Glad to see he’s expanded his operations.
I agree! We will definitely support you!
Spinelli’s Farm stand on Route 516 in Old Bridge is open. Current stock includes zucchini, summer squash, jalapenos, several varieties of eggplant, and a couple of varieties of cucumber. Most are in baskets at $3 a basket (I got a basket of 4 large and one small zucchini). You drop the money in a locked box with a slot, so have exact change. They have plastic bags, but I just use a cloth shopping bag and throw it in the wash later.
