Our first panel discussion at Pizza City Fest L.A. this year was "The Dough Whisperers," a panel including three of the leading dough experts in L.A. right now: Daniele Uditi (Pizzana), Andy Kadin (Bub & Grandma's; dough supplier for Nancy Silverton/Mozza) and Evan Funke (Funke, Felix Trattoria, Mother Wolf). Moderated by our friend Noel Brohner, this slightly edited version includes a few of the audience questions as well. You can watch the entire discussion on our YouTube channel as...

Salvatore LoCascio has paid his dues. First in Italy, then in Chicago, working for the city’s best Neapolitan pizza makers. He’s now stationed at Coda di Volpe - one of only three VPN certified pizzerias in the city, where he’s adding a touch of his Sicilian heritage, and adding a new pizza to the traditional lineup. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pizzacity/support

Michael Schell and his wife operate out of a ghost kitchen in Hyde Park, which is just a few miles from Inglewood and SoFi stadium. It’s a pretty grim block, and it’s hard to spot, but once you do, you’ll be happy you arrived. Schell loved Detroit style pizza, and wanted to create something a little bit different, mimicking shokupan milk bread in Japan. It's light, chewy and pretty dreamy when topped with sausage, red onions and giardiniera. Schellz Pizza Co. is destined for a...

This year's International Pizza Expo was back in full force after a couple of years of limping along. The Las Vegas Convention Center was filled with all kinds of vendors and suppliers, as well as pizza fanatics. I lost my voice the day before the Expo started, so it was a challenge talking to people, but I managed to hear a number of voices from different perspectives in the industry. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pizzacity/support

Matt Lyons built ⁠Tribute Pizza⁠ as an homage to some of the greatest pizzas he's ever had. He makes 13" Neo-Neapolitans, pan-baked grandmas and 18" NYC style pies, hand stretched and tossed like a pro. We spoke with Matt just before service, as he make one of his new favorites, inspired the pizzas he had at L'Industrie in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pizzacity/support

When most kids were figuring out Play Dough, Salvatore Grasso was literally playing with real dough, a result of a combination of double zero and zero flour. Today’s show is all about family and history. Growing up in a legendary Naples pizzeria - Gorizia 1916 - he is the fifth generation. We spoke to him and his wife, Lucia, about how they've maintained tradition while also adapting to keep up. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pizzacity/support

Franco Pepe has been in business since 2012, but it was the Chef's Table: Pizza episode that helped catapult him into stratospheric popularity among pizza aficionados. He has built a temple to the art of pizza - Pepe in Grani - where all dough is mixed by hand, and toppings are curated from around the country, oftentimes transformed into unrecognizable shapes. We got a rare tour of his space, in a renovated 14th Century structure hidden away on a tiny side alley. --- Support this podcast:...

Tucked into the first floor of the Urbanica Hotel in South Beach, a Brooklyn-style pizza awaits, topped with Bianco di Napoli tomatoes and Grande cheese. Yes, not all slice joints in S. Beach are equal! Editor Pizza is taking the beach pizza concept a few steps further, with a slight Argentinian twist. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/pizzacity/support

Robert Maleski grew up on Chicago's North Shore, devouring tavern style, thin crust, square-cut pizza. But a visit to Burt's in Morton Grove as an adult changed his life, literally. He's been obsessed with deep pan pizza ever since. He opened Milly's Pizza in the Pan during the pandemic, and just moved into a permanent space about a year ago, where he still makes every pizza himself. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/pizzacity/support

Dan Kluger took a very different route to pizza making. A classically trained chef who has worked with NYC legends like Danny Meyer, Tom Colicchio, Floyd Cardoz and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, he started Washington Squares as an answer to COVID restrictions, when his restaurant - Loring Place - was shuttered. Now the grandma-style squares are available all of the time from the basement kitchen; even on Goldbelly for nationwide shipping. --- Support this podcast:...

From Israel, to New York City and then…Berlin of all places. John Margulies went from clubs and electronic music to pizza, deciding to open his own pizzeria - Magic John's - just days before the world shut down in 2020. Today, he’s on a path toward expanding his brand all over Germany with his unique take on New York style and Detroit style pies. One of the things that has served him well is his innate hustle, and his ability to pivot almost daily. You think you have supply issues? Imagine...

What is "L.A. style" pizza? Fred Eric has some strong opinions on the matter. For one thing, it means using local toppings inspired by the immigrants who settled there, so Korean and Latin for starters. But it also refers to the use of kombu in the water used to make the dough. The result at Pi L.A. is an über light and crispy base for a pie that has perfect proportions and OBR (Optimal Bite Ratio).

George Bumbaris has had more jobs than most pizza makers: home inspector, real estate broker, and professional cook after attending culinary school. But he tapped into his own Greek heritage to come up with a dough for a deep pan pizza unlike anything else in the country, at George's Deep-Dish. This is 3rd Wave deep-dish for sure, since Bumbaris is using an all-natural starter for his dough.

Brett Nemec has worked his way up in the restaurant industry, and several years ago he decided to take the plunge into pizza. But not the tavern style thin, square-cut slices he grew up with in Chicago's western suburbs; rather, he decided to tackle New York slices, and has been improving ever since he opened in 2021. Zazas is one of several places to find great New York style slices these days in Chicago.

David Sheridan pivoted to pizza long before the pandemic, but even then he realized how important it was to use an all-natural starter for his dough. The pizzas at Wheated, in Flatbush, Brooklyn, are truly worth the journey. He's been perfecting his craft for over a decade, and it shows. His next challenge: bagels during the day.

Pre-Covid, Chris Cutillo was content running a restaurant supply business, dealing with all kinds of places around New York City. But things changed for him during the pandemic, and he went down the rabbit hole, like a lot folks. He opened Austin Street Pizza in a charming block of Forest Hills, Queens. It's easier than you might think to get to his shop, and it's well worth the effort! Big thanks to Serhan Ayhan for the recommendation.

Andrew Bellucci has had a tough couple of years. After opening Bellucci Pizza with a business partner then having a falling out during the pandemic, he struck out on his own - just a half-mile away - opening Bellucci's Pizzeria. Now, in addition to a legal battle, he has to constantly remind guests of his new business, while striving to make the best pizza he can, by using only the best ingredients. His experience working in a pair of Michelin-starred restaurants in Alsace is certainly unique...

Peter Campbell has been a force in the Minneapolis food community for several years. When he opened Red Wagon Pizzeria in SW Minneapolis, he immediately tackled the issue of sourcing heritage grains for his dough. The result has been nothing less than spectacular. Combining that artisan dough with creative toppings has put Red Wagon in a class by itself.

Jeff Rogers grew up in Minneapolis, though his family is from the Iron Range in Northern Minnesota. His restaurant and bar experience in the Twin Cities led him to open his own place, Wrecktangle, which is certainly inspired by Detroit, but doesn't feel the need to adhere to those regional rules. Jeff creates unique flavors for a pie that is unique among its peers in Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Facundo De Fraia is passionate about all things Argentinean. The Buenos Aires native earned a reputation for making empanadas in the Twin Cities, but soon added pizza to his repertoire when he opened Boludo. His thin, blistered pies emerge from conveyor ovens, as do his Fugazettas - a unique pizza with no sauce, just lots of onions and cheese.

Partners Hannah Ziskin and Aaron Lindell created two businesses during COVID: House of Gluten (Hannah) and Quarter Sheets Pizza Club (Aaron). Now the two have integrated both into a small shop in Echo Park, just off Sunset Boulevard, near Dodger Stadium in L.A. The pies are resplendent with soft crumb (made from various artisan flours) and sturdy crust, the result of an all-natural starter.

Noel Brohner grew up in the 1970s eating a lot of frozen pizza in California. But as the child of parents hailing from both New York and Chicago, his early impressions were shaped by frequent visits to both cities. After a life-changing experience in culinary school, he emerged as a dough whisperer of sorts, helping some of L.A.'s biggest names develop their pizza programs. Known as @slowrisepizza on Instagram, Brohner is now busy eating, baking and consulting all over California. He talked...

Ryan Baddeley is the owner of Pizzeria Badiali, a fantastic slice shop in Queen West, a hipster area in Toronto. We talked about the must-visit places in Toronto (sorry we didn't get to North of Brooklyn) but kudos to our friend Amy Rosen, who insisted we meet for a slice at Badiali. This is a unique pizza in a city full of Neapolitans.

Victor Barry is a chef and restaurateur in Toronto who continues evolving. He’s got three Piano Pianos, a Piccolo Piano plus two shops dedicated to pizza, and now a slowly growing frozen business. I first had his pizza sitting at the restaurant’s bar about six years ago, and I still remember how much I enjoyed it. Very Neapolitan, and very dialed-in to the list of imported ingredients. But most important, he makes sure he has a pizzaiolo who knows how to work the oven.

Chris Getchell is widely acknowledged as the founder, creator, mastermind at Descendant in Toronto. It’s in Leslieville, on Queen East, and it’s among the best Detroit style pizzas anywhere. Steve was back in Toronto a few weeks ago, and so when he set up the interview, expecting to meet Chris, he instead met Ike Tzakis, another partner and pizzamaker there. Ike’s going to break some news on today’s show, so if you’re at all interested in the Toronto pizza scene, listen carefully.