His Pizza Was Incredible... So Why Was Nobody There?

[00:00:03]Since I was running a successful catering business, I thought that would automatically translate into a successful pizza business.

[00:00:11]>> [music] >> And that's not true.

[00:00:12]>> Yeah.

[00:00:13]>> Right now, I'm I'm doubting all of my life choices.

[00:00:16]>> This pizza shop has something most pizza shops would kill for. Great pizza, the dough is dialed in, the equipment is top-notch, the systems are impressive.

[00:00:25]And honestly, the pizza is really good.

[00:00:28]But there's one problem. [music] Vito's not getting enough customers. And on this episode of The Pizzeria Insider, we are going to walk through Il Maestro with [music] Vito, and we're going to see what is going on here. Because his pizza is great, he has an amazing catering business, and as you can always imagine, just because you have a great catering business and you make great pizza, >> [music] >> that does not translate automatically to having a great pizza business. We're going to walk you through the operation, look at what's working, look at what's not working, and what I would do and what I think Vito should do to get Il Maestro to where he wants it to be.

[00:01:04]There's going to be some things in here that are going to be very interesting and a little unorthodox. That and more of this episode of The Pizzeria Insider.

[00:01:15]>> Was the hood system here?

[00:01:17]>> Yeah, hood and grease trap.

[00:01:18]>> What was this place before then?

[00:01:20]>> Commissary for a catering, but different style of catering. So, what I did was I brought most of the equipment, some of it this one, this one, those the ones that are these four that are out there are my landlord. She very gracefully let me use them cuz she kept it from the last tenant who owed her money, so she just kept all that [ __ ] Typical story of, you know, bad actors, bro.

[00:01:43]>> Yeah, yeah.

[00:01:44]>> So, she's in love with me because this was literally like in ruins. Like this was yellow with grease.

[00:01:52]>> Oh.

[00:01:53]>> We did ozone treatments, seven different deep cleanings. We did the whole nine yards, a grease trap maintenance, we did the snake, the this, the pressure pump, like we did all of it. The inspector comes in here out of the 83 points in their list, they gave me three points because you can't have a perfect score.

[00:02:12]Cuz the guy's like, "Dude, you can't go home with a 100% because they're going to think I'm you're I'm I'm getting paid."

[00:02:19]>> Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:02:20]>> But that's the level of detail that you have to have to run a kitchen. Cuz then you're not running a kitchen, it's a [ __ ] show.

[00:02:27]>> Yeah. So, what what we This is literally like what we've been doing for big events is we ferment for 72 hours.

[00:02:36]>> Yep.

[00:02:37]>> And then we literally bring it out.

[00:02:41]>> So, you made those all here?

[00:02:43]>> Yeah.

[00:02:43]>> These are all made here? And we take like the little pita bread.

[00:02:47]>> Oh, okay.

[00:02:48]>> So, these go into the oven at 950° and it's like nothing happened.

[00:02:54]>> Okay, that's pretty easy.

[00:02:55]>> Yeah.

[00:02:56]>> So, what do you serve when people walk in here? You make the pizza to order?

[00:03:00]>> Fresh pizza.

[00:03:00]>> With the dough?

[00:03:01]>> Yeah.

[00:03:02]>> Okay.

[00:03:02]>> So, we're doing Caputo blue at 67% hydration.

[00:03:09]>> Okay. No walk-in here, right?

[00:03:11]>> No.

[00:03:11]>> Yeah, that's what I figured.

[00:03:12]>> We don't have walk-in money, bro.

[00:03:16]This is old dough.

[00:03:18]>> Is this for 12-in pizza?

[00:03:20]>> Yeah, 12 oz, 340 g.

[00:03:22]>> So, this is the poor man's fermentation method. Okay.

[00:03:27]>> Instead of having a walk-in in order to multiply its storage capacity, we did the carts and we slide four pans, yep, cover them, oil.

[00:03:38]This is the perfect temp conductor to achieve good fermentation in a cold temp setting up to like 10 days.

[00:03:48]>> Really?

[00:03:48]>> Cold cold ferment.

[00:03:50]>> Wow.

[00:03:50]>> And this works in that in the >> Yeah.

[00:03:53]>> to go oven and the one for here?

[00:03:56]>> In the to go oven, it's already been par-baked.

[00:03:58]>> Uh in the right >> though.

[00:04:00]>> Same dough.

[00:04:00]>> So, this is the dough that you par-bake, but it's also the dough that you make fresh when people come.

[00:04:04]>> Correct. So, what we do for par-bakes, in order to give it an extended shelf life, we cut the fermentation at 72 hours. 3 days, we pull it from the stock, par-bake 400 450° in the oven, 2 or 3 minutes, and it's the shelf.

[00:04:21]>> Okay.

[00:04:22]>> For tonight, we need fresh mozzarella for the event. It will automatically print out and tell you, "Okay, this fresh mozzarella is due on the 16th."

[00:04:32]>> Okay, got you.

[00:04:33]>> Rather than if, for example, we did dairy fresh mozzarella uh it's on the 19th.

[00:04:40]>> Okay.

[00:04:41]>> Because it's going to be pulled from the temperature-controlled setting. It's going to be at a catering event. You don't know if you can follow that line.

[00:04:49]Basically, when this fresh mozzarella is out of the event, it gets tossed. Okay.

[00:04:53]Um but this guy helps me get control, especially over the fermentation process, which is the heart of the business. People come back here because they say, "Wow, this dough was amazing."

[00:05:06]>> Yeah.

[00:05:07]>> And nobody's doing 10-day dough.

[00:05:09]>> That's a long time.

[00:05:10]>> That's too much time.

[00:05:11]>> [laughter] >> That's not supposed to happen.

[00:05:14]>> Yeah.

[00:05:14]>> But after 4 or 5 years of R&D, we got there where it's like you know, 7, 8, 10 days. We can still make something that works.

[00:05:23]>> What's that dough in there that was What you showed me?

[00:05:25]>> Bro, that's like 12 days.

[00:05:27]>> Is it really? It'll still rise in there?

[00:05:32]Email's important, social media's important, but if I needed orders today, text is the only way that's going to work. I have my phone on me all the time. If I see a text from you and it's like If you have a thousand texts, you might get 20, 30, 40 orders. So, do that on this. And Slice has the ability to change your pizza box quickly. You can say, "Hey, listen, I want a box that says [ __ ] DoorDash. Order from me direct." They'll make it for you cuz they hate DoorDash, too.

[00:05:55]>> Bro, I That would be awesome.

[00:05:57]>> Are you using Slice for customers, too?

[00:05:59]Like through emails and everything?

[00:06:01]Okay. How many Do you know how much data you have in there?

[00:06:02]>> Probably like 100.

[00:06:04]>> Cuz it's only people who order.

[00:06:05]>> Yeah.

[00:06:06]>> All right, okay. You have the basics set up. Like you You have a a good spot. You have all the equipment. You have the knowledge to make good pizza. You just need to get the word out there better. Do you hand out cards to people at the catering suit?

[00:06:18]>> I do it all. I think the lack of consistency.

[00:06:22]>> Yeah.

[00:06:22]>> That's even if we have the best marketing set up in the whole wide world. If you get people in the door and you're not open, that is at the end of the night where like I feel an investor might really make a huge dent. Higher two people.

[00:06:39]>> Yeah.

[00:06:40]>> And that way I can be like, "Okay, if I have $10,000 worth of catering in West Palm Beach, which happens, I have to go to West Palm Beach and cater."

[00:06:48]>> Right.

[00:06:49]>> Cuz where am I going to get those $10,000 in in the street? But I can have this here, one guy take out, look at the par bake operation.

[00:06:57]>> you partner with somebody? Like partner I wouldn't take investor money. I would partner with someone who doesn't have money but can work. Come here, partner with me.

[00:07:05]>> You need to be here.

[00:07:06]>> Five to nine, Wednesday through Sunday.

[00:07:08]We'll partner. Like you make money, too.

[00:07:09]Like you get a salary. You get paid based on how many how much business we get in. Like have them help you market it and work. An investor is just going to hand you money and be like, "All right, when am I getting my money back plus interest?" They're not going to help you It's not going to solve the problem. You'll have money to hire somebody. You still have to worry about how to get customers in the door. You have a partner here that's like with you. They may make money when you make money. Like that's the way I would do it. There's a lot of people out here who went to college and don't like what they went to college for.

[00:07:36]>> Yeah.

[00:07:37]>> And they want a job.

[00:07:38]>> Yeah.

[00:07:39]>> Right? Like they want to do pizza. And they don't have money to build what you've already built.

[00:07:45]>> And separate the business.

[00:07:47]Like you To me, you have two businesses.

[00:07:48]You have a catering business and you have a shop.

[00:07:51]>> So, the person you bring in doesn't own the catering business.

[00:07:54]>> Ah, okay. I get you.

[00:07:56]>> own this.

[00:07:57]>> Okay.

[00:07:58]>> Like your job is to come in here, work this, get this off the ground. You own You own a percentage of that.

[00:08:03]>> I like that.

[00:08:03]>> So, then you can use the catering business for your lifestyle and your work. And then you have somebody to help you with this part of it.

[00:08:09]>> That's actually an awesome idea. Cuz that's what I need. I need somebody like me who's going to be here and do their 18-hour days and be like, "Okay, this is mine."

[00:08:19]>> somebody that has time, no money, >> No money.

[00:08:22]>> but wants to do a pizza shop, but it can't do a pizza shop because they don't have any money. You're like, "Listen, I got it all right here. You don't need any of that. I already know what I'm doing. I have all the stuff. All you got to do is be here because I can't."

[00:08:32]>> Literally, that's it.

[00:08:33]>> Yeah.

[00:08:33]>> This is good. This is therapeutical. I feel like I'm being relieved of a couple of months' worth of stress.

[00:08:41]>> I've been in your position. I wish I knew what I know now >> Yeah.

[00:08:45]>> way back then cuz it would have been a different circumstance. First of all, I probably wouldn't have opened that spot because it was not in an ideal location, but I was young and dumb. And I was like wanted to just to do something, not thinking about logistically. And then marketing-wise, I would have done it differently, too. It's an easy fix I don't Listen, it's not an easy fix, but there is a fix.

[00:09:03]>> Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:09:04]>> Listen, I haven't tried your pizza, though. Your pizza could suck. That's going to make it a whole different story.

[00:09:08]>> Uh-huh.

[00:09:09]>> I'm hoping it doesn't.

[00:09:10]>> No, me me, too.

[00:09:11]>> you.

[00:09:12]>> [laughter] >> I hope I do.

[00:09:16]>> I second-guessed my whole existence for a second.

[00:09:19]>> I I can see like the ingredients you're using, your setup. So, I'm banking on the fact that it's not.

[00:09:25]>> What are you making?

[00:09:26]Margarita. It's the only way. Stanislaus al Tagliacozzo.

[00:09:29]>> Yep. The style of pizza you make here, is it the same style you make in that?

[00:09:34]>> Yeah.

[00:09:34]>> So, you Would you say it's Neapolitan-ish?

[00:09:38]>> Neapolitan It It began as a Neapolitan dough. Now, it's not. It's more of like a Puglia style. Cuz in Puglia, they do rounds thin.

[00:09:49]>> Okay.

[00:09:49]>> They thin them out with a rolling pin.

[00:09:51]>> Okay.

[00:09:52]>> I don't use the rolling pin, but I thin them out. But since they have so much fermentation, it it leaves like a really subtle crust at the end. So, in the United States, I feel this is more of a like neo Neapolitan pie.

[00:10:07]>> Okay.

[00:10:07]>> Especially because of the level of hydration that we're using. We're at 67.

[00:10:13]Grande cheese. I'm a purist. I do Grande for everything. I I like >> Grande is a good cheese. Fresh mozzarella is a It's like a watery. You got to make sure that it's not >> I use a low moisture and then add the fresh on top.

[00:10:33]>> It's almost ready.

[00:10:35]>> You like the Moretti Forni oven?

[00:10:37]>> Yeah.

[00:10:37]>> I was actually talking to somebody they were choosing between I think this and the Pizza Master are the two most popular ovens nowadays.

[00:10:44]>> They are. Like developing my Italianness, whatever that means.

[00:10:49]You know, Moretti has the the Italian essence, whatever it may be, and they are probably the most important or at least one of the most important house brand names in Italian ovens. I haven't had a technical issue with these in 3 years. Change the light bulb, you know, maintenance, you know, the the vacuuming, the stuff like that. But other than that, bro, like they're amazing ovens.

[00:11:17]About to get We're done.

[00:11:23]>> Beautiful.

[00:11:25]This will just be my plate I eat it off of.

[00:11:27]>> [laughter] >> There it is.

[00:11:30]You're going to have some, too?

[00:11:31]>> Of course.

[00:11:32]>> Let's go. I'm going to sit down. May I?

[00:11:33]>> Yeah, of course.

[00:11:34]>> [laughter] >> Thank you.

[00:11:36]Appreciate you having us.

[00:11:36]>> Salute. Buon appetito.

[00:11:39]Enjoy, guys.

[00:11:43]>> [music] >> You have a good pizza. Great pizza.

[00:11:45]>> Thank you.

[00:11:46]>> You don't have to worry about that.

[00:11:47]>> Yeah, thanks.

[00:11:47]>> You're just going to get customers in here now.

[00:11:49]>> We have to get customers in here now.

[00:11:50]>> This is great.

[00:11:51]>> So, when someone walks in, do they order a fortune version of this?

[00:11:56]>> Yeah, you're good, man. You just need to get customers in here.

[00:11:58]>> We have to.

[00:11:58]>> Find that guy, [music] work it out, help you with operations over there, and you just push it.

[00:12:03]>> If you enjoyed this episode, you're going to want to check out this Pizzeria Insider episode right here because YouTube thinks you're going to like it.

[00:12:10]Also, don't forget to leave a comment below in where is your pizza shop. And if you want us to come in there, help you [music] fix your marketing in your pizza shop, drop a link in the comments below this video.