Bet you didn’t know that some of the best New York Pizza you can find is located in Atlanta. I’ve been tracking internet pizza guru Jeff Varasano for a couple of years now. His 40+ page treatise on making pizza dough is the stuff of legend in the food subculture. That’s forty pages of pizza dough - not pizza or even making pizza - just the dough. That obsession is more understandable when you consider that Jeff’s first stab at minor celebrity status began when he set the Rubik’s Cube record at 24.something seconds - at age 14.
The Goods
Real pizza is of course all about the dough. Then comes cooking technique. Ingredients are last in the order of importance.
Jeff Varasano, an engineer by trade, was born and raised in the Bronx, ground zero for New York pizza. Whenever one is raised with extraordinary being the norm, you don’t know how good you have it until you don’t have it anymore. This very problem faced Jeff when he relocated to Atlanta in 1998, reason unknown (to me anyway). That situation resulted in his quest to replicate or exceed the product he was used to in his native New York. Along the way, he determined that good dough is as much art as science and needs the regular care of a craftsman. And the pizza oven must be around 800F. Pizza stone completely optional.
To get these temperatures at home, Jeff modified his home oven to disable the interlock for the oven cleaning cycle. (The “cleaning cycle” is really just the “really high temperature cycle.”). You can get these temperatures - and results at home - without destroying the Maytag - but that is for another day.
Watching the crew in action was interesting. Everyone had a single job. One guy crafted the dough. Guy 2 tossed the dough into the base for the pizza. Number 3 built the pie. Four runs the oven, regularly “shooting” the oven with an infrared thermometer to ensure they oven was at the desired temperature - not relying on the 385C at the digital readout of the oven. Finally, the fifth guy dresses the pizza with a bit of oil and herbs, if you asked for it.
Does it work? Generally yes. The pizza was in fact extraordinary. The char on the crust was essentially flawless. The sauce and hunks of mozzarella just as they should be. Everyone should experience such a pizza. It is nothing at all like any mass produced delivery you’ll ever have. Maybe only ten joints in North America are on par with Varasano’s
A Quick Lesson in Dough
Still, there are kinks. Customer service is ok, not great. Timing off drinks and such totally off. Worse, the accuracy of the orders was poor. I ate there twice this week. Go what I ordered once. Simply put, the focus on the attention to the kitchen has not carried forward into the training of the wait staff.
Worst part was, Jeff stopped the whole operation for 20 minutes on my first visit to give the kitchen a lesson/critique on dough-making during service. Because the kitchen is open to the dining room, this was all in plain sight for all to see. While I encourage the training of the staff, it should not be in view of the patrons. And the way he was talking to the staff, I wouldn’t expect them all to stay.
Of course, the pizza was extraordinary. If you visit Atlanta, you must put Varasano’s on your itinerary.
Christian, there is another place in Atlanta– Paisano’s– that swears it is all about the water. Situated proudly in the rear of the dining room is the large water storage tank full of water shipped in from the NYC tap…
Great to meet you today. Lok forward to more discussions.
Seize the Day,
Rob
<Sales Expert For Small Business Owners
Personal Asset Prottection For Small Business Owners
More great facts about more great food. Thanks for that, let’s eat.
Lynn Lane
Success Strategies For Life
Success Today
Pizza is one of my favorite foods on the planet. Every town has its pizza place of choice. When I’m in Atlanta I will look it up.
Steve Chambers, The Sales Expert
The Sales Eagle Solution - 12 months to dominate your market
Before all this gluten intolerance happened with my body, pizza was one of my favorite foods. I have had some good crust made from brown rice flour but never at a place like you mention in your post. Gluten free pizza can be pricey and hard, nearly impossible to find unless your are in a metropolitan area with lots of options.
Anthony
http://www.anthonylemme.com
The Most Powerful Personal Growth and Mind Develpment Tool on Earth
I love pizza! It’s one of my favorite things in the world!!
JJ Jalopy.
Coaching Mentoring Expert JJ Jalopy
Great information to know for the next time we’re in Atlanta. Nothing better than authentic NYC style pizza. Definitely no pizza here in Houston even comes close to the real deal.
Pam
Invest in Your Future
OOO, now this is important information to know for a great date - both where to go for great food and then how to cook some of it once you establish a great relationship!
Best regards,
April Braswell
Single Boomer Dating Expert, Relationship Success Coach
Widow Support and Bereavement Counseling Outreach Workshop Henderson, NV, Nevada, Las Vegas
I might check this pizza place out. Thanks for the tip!
Health, Fitness — Darryl Pace
Fitness Product Review
Christian,
Wow, that guy really take pizza dough dead serious.
Great to hear about his success story.
John Ho
Numerology Expert Helps Understanding Personality for Better Influence & Persuasion (WordPress Blog)
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Numerology Expert Helps Understanding Personality for Better Influence & Persuasion (Money Page)
Problem with the engineer in him and lack of customer service. Has he written a book on the pizza dough science.
Bob Kaufer
Sign Up For My Free Neuro Performance and Health℠ E-Course
Despite the poor customer service, these pizzas sound delicious. If I had time to come out of my retirement from the hopsitality trade, I’d help them sort out the waiting staff. Getting excellent food consitently is more difficult to achieve in my experience.
All the best,
Yann
Best Online Marketing & Business Strategies for Persistent Beginners - ProfitsTactics.com
Find your niche and become a legend! Thats what this guy has done and has done a fabulous job of it too
Duane
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good to know where to get great pizza. Central Oregon has got to be the worst place on the planet to find good pizza. there are a couple upscale places that call what they make “authentic NY pizza” but i bet they have never been east of the Mississippi by the tast of it.
Don Shepherd
Central Oregon Camphiker
Must have been an interesting show though I agree-never take an employee to task in front of a customer
[although it could be that he was using that situation as a forum for his customers to see his fine attention to detail]
Thanks
JC
JCMACKENZIE.COM
Making money-reviews
I love pizza. I especially love homemade pizza. Of course I love it more if somebody else makes it, because everything tastes better when someone else is cooking it.
don’t worry christian, I’ll be back to make up some more of the comments I owe you soon.
Lisa McLellan, Babysitting Services - Babysitters, Nannies, and Au-pairs