How your staff performs during the rush is tightly tied to how well prepped they are. And while having dough made, cheese grated and toppings portioned are all essential, I’m talking about a deeper layer of prep: that of being physically efficient and fast.



NASCAR pit crews spend days practicing pit stops, changing tires and pumping gas rapidly so that under race conditions, every move is second nature. At that level, hundredths of seconds count. My volunteer fire department has elected to formally train at least once a week. Seconds count when a house or business is on fi re or you are trapped in a car wreck and bleeding out. When the pager goes off, you have got to be on your game or possibly be part of a tragedy. When the heat is on, one either shifts into an unconscious competency or is paralyzed with fear. I train the staffs of my clients to be efficient by:

1.) Determining how long each task should take, and;
2.) Timing employees on completing those tasks.

A timer is a great way to objectively measure speed and build a mindset of urgency. It also nurtures healthy competition on staff while shaving dollars off your labor costs. For example, I train just one way to cut a green pepper. I demonstrate how quickly I do it and then expect trainees to copy me. I hand them a bunch of peppers and tell them it should take X minutes to cut all of them to spec. Same with dough production, same with cheese grating or mopping the floor — virtually anything done in a pizzeria can be time standardized.

I expected my crew to set the bar at 100 percent productivity 80 percent of the time. That means when an employee is performing any task at all, it’s at maximum efficiency, even during off-peak hours. And when you’ve blown through the night’s rush or a busy prep period and people could use a break, let ‘em relax. Remember the generally accepted truism that one highly trained and skilled cook can outperform two or more novices? These folks develop their personal high sense of urgency by being really mentored by a master pizza maker. I had several mentors, and every one of these guys had one expectation in common: keep up or clock out.

And remember those labor savings I mentioned? Use them to reward your fastest employees, sometimes with cash or prizes awarded in front of others (I call that building healthy envy), and sometimes with hourly raises. But asking them to perform at full tilt without any gratitude is a recipe for frustration and discontent. When they win, you will, too. ❖

Big Dave Ostrander owned a highly successful independent pizzeria before becoming a consultant, speaker and internationally sought-after trainer. He is a monthly contributor to Pizza Today and leads seminars on operational topics for the Internationa Pizza Expo

Q: Most of my customers come in with a coupon. How do I wean them off and get them to pay regular price again?

A: Good for you for using the almighty coupon as a tool to bring folks in, as the current economy has virtually changed every aspect of how we do business. Start building stronger relationships with customers. Get to know them and give them little samples of things as you start to minimize your coupon advertising. This builds customer loyalty where a coupon is no longer necessary. If coupons continue to drive up guest counts, and you don’t feel like you can get away from them, simply raise your prices.

In trying to get the most out of my staff, I’m more confused than ever whether to use a discipline system or reward to get the best productivity out of employees. What works best for you?

I have found that you need to have the perfect balance of both. I meet operators who are actually afraid to discipline because they don’t want to lose that employee and have to train someone new. That is one of the biggest mistakes an operator can make. Lowering your standard to meet the current work ethic of the average youngster coming into the workplace today will surely and ultimately shut you down. I’ve also seen operators reward someone who is simply meeting company expectations. That’s pushing it. You want to reward those who exceed the expectation and discipline those who are not with a little coaching and encouragement. That’s how you continually raise the bar and blow your competition away.

I notice that you have some really different items at your restaurant, like roasted eggplant eggrolls. Where do you get them and do they sell well?

I love to create different menu items that can’t be found anywhere else. They are fairly easy to make, and they are so unique that some customers come just for them (while others come because of them). Think outside the box. Look at the ingredients you already have and create new and exciting dishes for your customers that will bring them back! I recently had a group use my dining room for a breakfast meeting. I cooked up a nice little breakfast and actually made a couple hundred dollars before my staff even came in. Is there a way to get more of this kind of business?

Yes! If you have the space and time, offering your space for breakfast catering is a perfect way to increase sales. There are business networking groups, as well as other groups (like church groups, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs and the like) that meet monthly or weekly and need a private and quiet place to hold their breakfast meetings. Go to them and offer them your place. Keep them happy with a slightly different menu each week. The great thing is, you’ll see their faces in your place during the week as well for your regular fare! ❖

Jeffrey Freehof, owner of The Garlic Clove in Evans, Georgia, is Pizza Today’s resident expert. This will be his last “Ask Chef Jeff” column. Beginning next month, Big Dave Ostrander will take over our montly Q&A, while Jeff Chef focuses on developing recipes for us each month.

I can’t wait until the January issue gets in your hands next month. We have worked hard on a redesign, and I’m really proud of the new look. The changes are pretty intense, and I’m confident our new format and columns are going to help pizzeria owners more than ever.

While there are many changes that carry Pizza Today into the publishing future, one of the new sections I’m most excited about is decidedly retro: we’re bringing back a “Letters to the Editor” page. It’s been well over a decade since Pizza Today has published letters to the editor, and my crew thought it would be fun to revive that nod to magazine tradition while we move forward.

So tell me what’s on your mind (in 200 words or less). Something you love — or hate — about the magazine? Let me know. Did you really dig a recipe or article? Tell me why you loved it. Did you vehemently disagree with one of my commentaries or really think a particular article missed the mark? Let me know. Positive feedback encourages us. Negative feedback helps us improve. Getting a letter to me is easy.

The preferred and most efficient way is through e-mail. Just put “Letter to the Editor” in the subject line and e-mail me: jwhite@ pizzatoday.com. If e-mail is too old school for you, direct message me on Twitter. Pizza Today can be found at www.twitter.com/pizzatoday. Again, make it clear it’s a letter to the editor. You can also fi nd us on Facebook and send us a private message: www. facebook.com/pages/Pizza-Today/135784216462442. Not real computer savvy? No problem. Fax your letter to my attention at (502) 736-9501.

I won’t be able to publish every letter I get due to space requirements. But I look forward to publishing — and sometimes responding to — your comments each month in the magazine. Tear out this page and tuck it in a drawer next to your computer. When we inspire you or hit a nerve, make sure you tell me about it … in no more than 200 words.

WANNA GO FOR A RIDE? While we’re at it, I want to directly solicit your thoughts on a pizza industry event my publisher and I would like to make happen on an annual basis.

A few of us in the Pizza Today office are really into cycling. Since October is National Pizza Month as well as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I was thinking Pizza Today should organize a large group ride from one major city to the next. We could pair with an organization such as the American Cancer Society or the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and use the ride to raise money for the chosen charity. Pizzerias nationwide would be encouraged to make a donation (perhaps a percentage of sales on a given day?). Pizzerias along the route we cycle would be encouraged to join in by having their employees cycle along, accept donations from the public, etc. I know from past fundraising experience that the local chapter of the chosen charity will help any pizzeria that wants to be involved by providing marketing for the event. They’ll provide press releases and maybe even signage, flyers, etc. if warranted.

It would be a way the pizza industry could give back to society and make a difference on a meaningful level.

October isn’t the only month we could do this ride in the future. Breast cancer isn’t the only cause we could work to aid. These are my thoughts, but I’m open to suggestions. • What charity should we work to help?
• Where should we do the ride?
Portland to Seattle? Louisville to Chicago? Los Angeles to San Diego? Madison to Minneapolis? St. Louis to Kansas City? Tell me in your first letter to the editor.

Regards,

Jeremy White, editor-in-chief
jwhite@pizzatoday.com

Q: We are baking garlic knots in our air impingement oven, right along with our pizzas, but the bottom of the knots are getting too dark. Aside from pulling them out of the oven a little before they fully exit the oven, is there anything we can do that might correct this problem?



A: The problem you describe is due to the excessive bottom heat, which is needed to properly bake your regular pizzas, so unless you have a split conveyor, it is not practical to reduce the baking time by speeding up the conveyor, and adjusting the baking conditions is out of the question as you would not be able to bake your pizzas while the garlic knots are being baked. The best solution will be in either of the two following approaches:

1) Double pan the garlic knots for baking. This means placing an extra pan under the knots when you place them into the oven. The second pan will help to reduce heat to the bottom of the baking pan, hence reducing the bottom heat (and, hopefully, no more excessively dark bottoms).

2) You might try using an Air Bake pan, available from any supermarket or discount house. These pans are constructed with two layers of metal on the bottom, thus creating a dead air space between the product and the bottom heat of the oven. This is very similar to the double panning described above.

Question:
We have a potential market for our dough at a nearby bar, but they want the dough already formed and frozen. What is the best way to go about this?

Answer:
If you don’t already have a walk in or reach in freezer with some extra space, you may need to invest in a small chest type freezer, then get a couple dozen expanded aluminum baking screens (they don’t need to be seasoned as you won’t be baking on them) and a couple wire tree racks that you can fit into your freezer. Use your regular dough, and open it up to the desired diameter, and place it onto a screen, then put the screen into the rack, which is in the freezer. When the rack(s) are filled, make a note of the time and allow the dough skins to thoroughly freeze for 2-hours, then transfer the frozen dough skins to a food safe plastic bag, fitted inside of a corrugated cardboard box, also stored in the freezer. Just slide the dough skins off of the screens and stack-up inside the lined box. As soon as the box is filled (do not stack more than 12 to 15 skins in a box to prevent damaging the fragile dough skins) twist the open end of the bag to close it, and tuck it down, alongside the dough skins to secure it. Close the box flaps and tape closed. Place an adhesive label on the box showing the product and size, production date, and use by date. The use by date should be projected 10-days beyond the actual production date. Commercially frozen dough can have a shelf life of 12 to 20-weeks, but these doughs were frozen at much lower temperatures than your dough was frozen at. Commercially made frozen dough is frozen at -25 to -40 F, and sometimes even as low as -55 F, but your dough is only being frozen at 0 F, or slightly below that. The higher freezing temperature has a significant, harmful effect upon the yeast. That's why, in this case, we’ve got to limit the shelf life. Once you have your dough skins bulk packaged, it’s important to keep them frozen at a temperature as close to -5 F as possible. To use the dough skins, we recommend that whatever quantity is needed be removed from the case and placed directly onto the baking tray. Allow it to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then dress and bake in the normal manner.



Question:
We presently use two deck ovens to make our thin and deep-dish pizzas, but we are contemplating changing over to using conveyor ovens for their increased production capacity. Will we need to have dedicated ovens for each type (thin and deep-dish) of pizza?

Answer:
When you say conveyor, I’m going to assume that you mean air impingement ovens.

If you are planning to buy any of the new, high-efficiency air impingement ovens, there is a possibility that you will not need to have dedicated ovens for each of your two pizza types. I’ve personally evaluated all but one of the new generation ovens, and have found –– to my amazement –– that they do a fine job of baking both thin and thick (deep-dish) pizzas side by side in the same oven, at the same time and temperature, using the same finger profile. However, since there are so many different dough formulations, pans, topping concepts, etc., I cannot say for sure that the oven of your choice will bake both of your pizza types side by side, but I do know that the same top and bottom finger profile will work for both, so at the very worst, a split conveyor, allowing for two different baking times, simultaneously, in the same oven chamber should do the trick. To be sure, I would highly encourage you to contact the oven company you’re interested in and ask them if you can test bake your dough/ pizzas in their oven at their test facility. It is a small expense for the security of knowing that your new ovens will indeed be set-up and profiled correctly for your product, and perform as expected right from the start. I just assisted with a start-up of a new, triple deck oven at Kansas State University. We did the homework, and the ovens performed flawlessly from the start.

If, by chance, you are planning to buy older ovens, used or refurbished, you’re probably going to need to go the dedicated deck route, with one oven dedicated to each type of pizza. This is due to the fact that in most cases, the deep-dish pizzas will need to be baked at a different time and temperature than the thin crust pizzas.

A couple of things that you should be aware of: When I did the evaluation of the new ovens, I used the deep-dish pans (dark, anodized finish) and cloud patterned baking disks for all of the testing. So if you encounter problems in baking both pizza types side by side, you might want to give these a try to see if it works for you. Also, I would highly recommend that you consider getting at least one, if not both, ovens set up with a split conveyor configuration. This will allow you much greater flexibility for baking other products along with your pizzas (such as breadsticks, wings, or calzones.) ❖

Tom Lehmann is a director at the American Institute of Baking in Manhattan, Kansas.

We are pulling out all the stops to make sure next year’s Expo is the largest and best show ever! We’re offering you more than 80 business building seminars to choose from, as well as a new seminar program designed for the new operator. In fact, we’re designating Monday, February 28, as “New Operator Monday.” The best part is this intense five-hour educational program is FREE to registered attendees. We’ve also lined up several new speakers, developed new topics and planned new events to make this the ONLY show you’ll need to attend to find out about new trends, products and services in the pizza industry. Did I mention we’re giving away nearly $50,000 in cash and prizes?

As the old adage goes, “you’re either getting better or you’re not” — and this holds true for your pizzeria as well. In the current economic environment, it’s more important now than ever to discover new, innovative ways to boost profits and improve efficiencies. What are you doing to help your bottom line and combat the escalating costs of doing business? At next year’s Pizza Expo®, you’ll find solutions to your problems and more.

At International Pizza Expo®, you’ll have networking opportunities with some of the best and brightest pizza entrepreneurs and consultants in the business. With all the choices available to you at Expo, it’s a good idea to start planning your show strategy now. Map out a list of educational seminars you want to attend and start thinking about questions to ask at the Beer & Bull™ Idea Exchange. Take a few minutes now to review the attendee brochure for a list of exhibiting companies, seminars and demonstrations. If ever you’ve seen or read about a product or service you’d like to have for your pizzeria, then chances are you’ll find it and just about everything else for your pizzeria on the Pizza Expo show floor.

If you haven’t already registered to attend International Pizza Expo, the “World’s Oldest and Largest Pizza Show,” you should stop reading this now and call (800) 489-8324. Or, better yet, pre-register at www.PizzaExpo.com and save $10.

Our combined staff at Pizza Today and Pizza Expo® has been working for well over a year to produce the biggest and best show ever! In fact, we’re so sure that attending Expo will be the best business decision you’ll make this year –– we’re guaranteeing it. If you’re not satisfied with your experience at Pizza Expo, simply outline your thoughts in a personal letter to me and I’ll see to it that you receive a prompt refund of your registration fee.

It’s all Pizza and it’s all for YOU!

Best regards,
Bill Oakley
Executive Vice President

Q. When formulating your new concept, how did you want it to differ from your smaller location, Italian Gator?

A. The smaller location is a walk-up, window service pizzeria specializing in slices and with only 122 square feet of space. It is the feel and flavor of authentic New York City. Piesanos Stoned Fired Pizza was built to be a full service restaurant seating 125 people — with a blend of Italian entreés and pizza cooked in our unique, granite, stone-fi red pizza oven.

Q. Your menu is an eclectic blend of pizzas, fresh-baked breads, seafood, burgers, calzones and plated entreés. How are you controlling your food costs with such a large offering?

A. When creating the menu, we decided that a lot of the ingredients would be interchangeable in most of our dishes, ensuring everything stays fresh. With 20 years of experience and a well-trained staff, we have minimal waste.

Q. You bake your own breads in stone rotary ovens. How well do items like the garlic cheese knots and garlic breadsticks sell?

A. Even with complementary stone baked rolls, our garlic cheese knots are a big dine-in seller. The garlic bread sticks are very popular in our express take-out portion of the restaurant.

Q. You have a series of lunch specials at prix fixe prices. How do these boost your lunch sales?

A. We believe you need to give people excellent food for a fair price with quick, friendly service. Our lunch specials are very popular with customers, starting at only $6.99. When creating the menu, we had to have a system to put out lunch in a timely manner. Our fresh soups, salads, slices and personal pizzas make it very easy to put out high volume and control costs.

Q. As a new business, dining Web sites like Yelp and Urbanspoon. Do you keep up with these reviews and use them to make your business better?

A. These Web sites allow us to gain valuable insight into our customer’s perception of our business, allowing us to correct issues that we otherwise would miss. This allows us to focus on all aspects of the restaurant — including service, food quality and marketing.

Tim Chappell could only smile at the hype surrounding the Arkansas-Alabama football game on September 25, knowing well what the fervor would mean for Gusano’s Pizzeria, Chappell’s downtown Little Rock hot spot that serves Chicago-style pies alongside Razorback fandom.

Ninety minutes before the game’s 2:30 p.m. kickoff, Razorback fans had fi lled Gusano’s, gobbling up appetizers, pizza and drinks. Twenty fl at-screen televisions and two projector screens showcased a game undecided until its final minutes.

“Other than being at the game, this is as close as you can be to the action,” Chappell says of Gusano’s, which has become one of Little Rock’s go-to destinations for Razorback football.

For Chappell and his Gusano’s partners, playing to a crowd of Razorback-loving fans is a wise business practice, an annual ritual that packs the restaurant and delivers the establishment’s highest revenue days.

“These are our money days,” Chappell says of Arkansas football game days. “There’s no doubt we’re going to be full.”

In spots throughout the country, pizzeria owners have embraced televising athletic events as a moneymaking play. From NCAA basketball’s March Madness to the World Series, World Cup, and UFC, many operators have captured the sports-enthused crowd with targeted marketing, a high-end audio-visual experience, and a festive atmosphere mimicking the in-stadium experience.



As the Chicago Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup run unfolded last spring, Piece Brewery and Pizzeria capitalized on the euphoria. The restaurant crafted in-house marketing materials for tables, bathrooms, and point of purchase. It also displayed outdoor banners and utilized social media outlets to establish itself as a game-day destination. Patrons responded.

“Being a destination point for these big events is a conscious decision on our part and a viable business for us,” Piece owner Bill Jacobs says. “We were filled during every Hawks game and reaped the benefits of that exciting run.”

Last year, Piecora’s Pizza owner Dan Piecora took the suggestion of a regular patron to televise UFC events in his intimate, 60-seat banquet room. On the first fight night, 50 people attended; at the second Piecora’s fi ght night, fans filled the room, all of them paying an $8 cover to watch the UFC event on a 10-foot HD screen.

“It costs me $925 to show the fight in HD, but it’s worth every penny,” Piecora says. “These folks are eating and drinking, and many of them are new customers that have never been here before.” Piecora’s has now established itself as one of Seattle’s premier spots for an orderly, respectful and fan friendly viewing of UFC. Better yet, the highgrossing events have alleviated a revenue gap created by the recession.

But Piecora — and certainly Jacobs and Chappell — know they have to deliver a crowd-pleasing experience to gain fan interest.

It begins with a game that can be seen as well as heard. The audio-visual experience includes big-screen televisions or projection screens as well as clear, audible sound so fans can keep abreast of game information.

To foster a lively atmosphere that parallels the game-day experience, Gusano’s features former members of the Arkansas band playing the university fi ght song and leading cheers. Their presence, secured by a small fee and complimentary food and drink, contributes to Gusano’s robust reputation as a game-day destination.

“The band differentiates us from everyone else out there,” Chappell says.

At Piece, Jacobs believes his full-service bar, stocked with craft brews, resonates with sports fans who view beer and sports as a natural combination. “For my dollar, having a full bar is central to capitalizing on the sports audience,” he says.

But unlike bars, a pizzeria’s main source of sports viewing competition, generations can enjoy the game together at a pizzeria. Wise operators often play on that all-ages advantage.

A packed restaurant on game-day, however, can be a double-edged sword, particularly since fans will linger and control their dining room real estate. Waiting lists will swell as customers languish at tables, a challenge only combated with the right staffing and mindset.

On Razorback football Saturdays, Chappell loads the schedule with servers, bussers and cooks, all of whom are focused on customer service. Piecora hires a parking attendant during UFC events and directs staff to park on the street to free up his small lot. “The best we can do is to be focused on what we can do and what we need to do to make all customers happy,” Jacobs says of busy game days.

A packed game-day dining room (and no-smoking ban) compelled Ray Perkins, owner of Chubby Ray’s in Louisville, Kentucky, to build a 3,000-square-foot outdoor pavilion outfitted with four fl at-screen televisions. Though costly, Perkins says, the extra space has allowed him to accommodate fans and repel overcrowding issues.

In many cases, operators spend money to make money. Whether payper- view events, NFL Sunday Ticket, or a comprehensive cable package, restaurants often invest in premium TV offerings to appease fans. In other cases, the games trump other business. Piecora, for instance, must schedule his banquet room around monthly UFC events, thereby losing out on private parties. Though frustrating, the benefits are well worth the drawbacks.

“In the end, getting these fans brings far more positive than negative,” Piecora says. “It increases my cash fl ow and exposure while keeping my labor busy.” ❖

Chicago-based writer Daniel P. Smith has covered business issues and best practices for a variety of trade publications, newspapers, and magazines.

The Pizza Today staff has seen our fair share of pizzerias in good locations. From midtown Manhattan to just steps off of the beach in Ft. Lauderdale, there are dozens of places that prove it’s all about location.



Meet Zacky’s Pizzeria. When Pizza Today visited last spring, it was to Meredith, New Hampshire, we headed, a drive about an hour-and-a-half north of Manchester. Set on the shore of scenic Lake Winnipesaukee at a busy four-way intersection, it’s hard to miss the steady stream of cars –– often backing up for miles –– that pass this 2,700-square-foot pizzeria.



“The traffic goes up past (the high school) for two miles,” Elliot says. “This is a really tough intersection to get into or out of.” Wife Rachel says the intersection has even been named one of the five worst in the country.

Still, you can’t fault the Elliots for their tough location –– the traffic gives them plenty of daily exposure to the 6,600 year-round residents. During the summer months, the town population swells to 44,000. Aside from the annual tourist traffi c, Meredith also hosts a yearly motorcycle rally that brings new business to the area –– customers for whom Zacky’s, like other restaurants, must compete. Memorial Day, Bike Weekend, the July 4th weekend and autumn “leaf peepers” keep Zacky’s busy until around the end of October, when business wanes.



The theme here is sports memorabilia (the restaurant is named for the Elliot’s son, who plays three sports himself), but not just your average prints and mass-manufactured jerseys. “When people come in, we wanted them to feel that they could look up and see one thing that they related to,” says Elliot, “so that while they’re sitting down in here enjoying lunch or dinner, they could relate to it and have a conversation and relive the past.”

Part of these sports antiques comes from Elliot’s father and date back to the 1940s. There’s also a collection of original Annalee dolls –– Meredith is home to the parent company.

The shop itself has had two previous owners before Elliot took over in 2008. Elliot has a storied background that includes private investigations, sports management and –– as a kid –– even candymaking. He says Zacky’s was a “disaster” when they first bought the place, but they saw potential and turned it around quickly. Today, Zacky’s has a second 24-hour operation at a travel plaza in Auburn, New Hampshire. The original location closes in mid October or November, depending on the weather, and reopens in the late spring.

At the Meredith location, “what we try to do in here is to stay as simple as we possibly can, but yet we try to have as much homemade food on our menu as possible,” Elliot says. Among those you’ll find the non-traditional Lumpia, six Filipino spring rolls –– a nod to his wife’s heritage. They marinate the steak tips for their hot subs and make their own meatballs, dough and sauce.



When it comes to the menu, “simplicity matters because we get so much business in here,” Elliot says. “We’ve got to multitask so often in here. For us, we don’t have the time to get into the gourmet-type foods. We just want to keep it simple.”

Despite its simplicity, Zacky’s offers a wide variety of sandwiches, appetizers, salads, pizza, calzones and plated dinners. “I go to Boston to get a lot of my foods,” Elliot says. “We make the trip down there every week to buy all of our produce.”



Zacky’s offerings have received accolades, even winning “A Slice of Heaven” award from a weekly alternative magazine in Manchester. Aside from the blueberry apple streusel and breakfast pizza Elliot made for our visit, there’s a solid menu of traditional and gourmet offerings that provides plenty of options for its customers.



“At lot of times, we get a lot of people who come in here and (ask): ‘Is your pizza thin crust or thick crust?’” Elliot says. “We say it’s somewhere in between. … For us, we’ve always looked at it as an art. What we try to teach all of our employees is that we want all of our pizzas to have a personality. And, we want the pizza to be able to talk back to the customer — so color, appearance, presentation and character are all important to us when we design a pizza.”

A specialty line of pizzas includes Zacky’s Special, with pepperoni, ham, salami, mushroom, onion, sausage, tomato, green pepper and black olives ($12.50 for a 10-inch and $16.95 for a 16- inch). The Lake Winnipesaukee Special, a meat pie that doesn’t mess around, is topped with hamburger, bacon, ham, sausage and pepperoni ($12.25 for a 10- inch and $16.50 for a 16-inch large).



They work out of two well-loved deck ovens. “In the summertime, we turn the bottom one on so we can fi t up to 12 large pizzas in here at any one time,” Elliot says.

In order to successfully pull that menu off, the 20 or so employees are cross-trained for maximum efficiency. “We want everybody in here to do everything,” Elliot says. “High schoolers obviously can’t use a lot of the equipment, but I don’t just hire somebody to come in here to do the cash register. There’s just no time for that.”

Competition is fierce in this small tourist town, and there are several other pizza restaurants within a stone’s throw of Zacky’s. How do they maintain their individuality? “All of the other places are smaller,” Elliot says. “We have the largest sit down –– we have 42 seats and 16 tables in here. A couple of the places have 12 to 16 seats.”

Another point of differentiation? Private-label sodas. “We designed the label. When we started, what we did was every two months, we’d add a new flavor,” Elliot says. “People love these. It’s a great marketing tool for us. … The bottles are collectors’ items.”

An ice cream counter was added over the summer for those days when a big meal is just too much.

As a result of their 24-hour plaza operation, the Elliots have been able to keep their finger on the pulse of their area. “It’s kind of neat because we get a lot of truckers from around the country and we’ll get a lot of varied requests, particularly the pizzas or subs,” Elliot says. “Another good thing about (the travel plaza location) is that with the economy being the way it’s been, we’ve been able to get the pulse of what’s going on in other parts of the country and, really, how bad people are hurting out there.”



As a result, they’ve ramped up their marketing, including some non-traditional methods like using a golf cart with a car topper to pass out samples during events at Heskey Park, just across the street from their pizzeria.

“We try to go door-to-door to all the businesses from here out in a five-mile radius and we hand out coupons and menus,” Elliot adds.

With two locations under their belts, what are the Elliots doing to increase business? They’ve explored catering and have added birthday parties, and plan to add costumed characters at their busy intersection. They will handout small samples to the passing traffic –– inventive ways to drive traffic into the store instead of just past it. Capture just a small percentage of the estimated 5,000 cars that pass through each day, and Zacky’s just might be able to cash in on that heavy traffic. Admits Elliot: “It gets crazy around here!” ❖

Mandy Wolf Detwiler is managing editor at Pizza Today.

Your restaurant may be situated amongst office buildings and other entities where employees struggle over what to do for lunch, but winding up in such an ideal location is only half the battle — you still have to pull them into your business. Counting entirely on walk-by traffic is a strategy that will leave staff twiddling their thumbs, says Robert Smith, founder of Champion Media Worldwide, a Loves Park, Illinois-based marketing and PR consulting company.

Instead, says Smith, restaurants must aggressively market to these hordes of hungry folks if they’re going to increase their lunch daypart. Above all, he adds, you must do so in a way that stands out from the hundreds of other restaurants in your area. Otherwise, you’ll just blend into the background.

Kerry Elliott, co-owner of Slice It Up, located in Malvern, Pennsylvania, believes in being different. In business six years, the restaurant is located in a shopping center/strip mall where there are four other eating establishments. Surrounding it are plenty of offi ce buildings and other businesses. Elliott says they’ve made a “concerted effort” to cater to the corporate crowd. “We did this from the jump,” he says. “In the weeks before we opened we’d go out to the office buildings and drop off a whole stack of pizzas and menus at the reception desks.”

They also hit the various extended-stay hotels, bringing in free pizzas for the staff, along with menus, asking front desk staff to steer guests to the restaurant and giving them discounts off their own orders if they did.

“After we opened, this brought in a lot of people. One corporate building employs around 2,000 people — they’re probably our biggest supporter. But, other buildings support us too,” says Elliott, adding that lunch accounts for about 70 percent of their overall business.

They still rely on this strategy to keep their restaurant in front of people. In fact, they just recently dropped off free pizzas to around five of the extended stays, he says.

But that’s not all. They also fax out daily lunch specials, market through social media, pull business cards for free lunches (up to $10), and cater corporate meetings and other events, supplying paper plates and setting up hot food at no additional charge.

Boston’s Restaurant and Sports Bar also utilizes a face-to-face marketing strategy. Around five years ago, the franchise operation established a community outreach coordinator (CRC) position, says Randy Steinbrenner, vice president of sales and marketing.

The chain started in Canada in 1964 (where it currently has over 380 sites), entering the U.S. market in 2000. Presently, there are 53 locations in the contiguous U.S. and Mexico, says Steinbrenner, speaking from the U.S. headquarters in Dallas.

They try to hire a CRC — solely tasked with establishing a community/ business presence for the restaurants — in each location, he explains. The CRCs drive around in a logoed car, visit local businesses, drop off free pizzas (for example to local radio stations at lunchtime, bringing some good publicity), provide paycheck stuffers inviting employees to come by and try a pizza to hospital HR departments, connect and network with pharmacy reps (“They have to buy a lot of lunches,” says Steinbrenner); it’s a man-on-the-street position that keeps the restaurants in the public eye.

“We’ve had a lot of luck with the CRC program,” says Steinbrenner, adding that they do more lunch than the average casual dining restaurant. “In the states, you’re seeing more GMs and managers doing this kind of outreach. But we feel it’s best to have these positions focus on restaurant operations. The CRC program gives us the manpower to do this.”

Schools offer good lunchtime opportunities, especially if you’re catering to ravenous students, as Angela Dominick, chef and owner of Dom’s Trattoria in Beverly Farms, Massachussetts, does. For the last two school years, Dominick, whose 22-seat restaurant is located in a small community with many private schools, has been providing lunch to four of these via a lunch program she helped establish. Currently, 570 children are registered in the program, which offers healthy eating options, including gluten-free pizzas.

The schools lacked cafeterias, so students were brown-bagging it. Some parent-customers brought her to the attention of one school, and opportunity expanded from there. Parents order and pay for the lunches on her Web site; Dominick and her employees (three, including her, handle the lunch program) package the food in color-coded bags, delivering it to each school.

Getting involved in school charity auctions helped shine attention her way, says Dominick. Rather than simply providing meal gift certificates, she gave away group cooking lessons to couples, affording her a fun way to build relationships.

The school lunch program has made a big difference to her lunch daypart, says Dominick. It not only increased her revenues, but also her exposure. For example, she also participates in back-to-school nights at these private schools, talking to parents about her restaurant and her approach to food/ nutrition.

Her advice? Rethink charitable giving. “A lot of people think of charities as a headache and just give away gift certificates,” Dominick says. “But if you use them correctly, they’re a real opportunity.” 

Pamela Mills-Senn is a freelancer specializing in writing on topics of interest to all manner of businesses. She is based in Long Beach, California.

“When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world.” — George Washington Carver

What did I do in an uncommon way to gain not just the attention of many, but the loyalty of my customers? Pizza & Prevention. At its conception, this event was my way of commemorating the tragedy of 9/11. I needed to recognize our hometown heroes and all they do for us. The basic concept was a community event designed to promote disaster prevention and introduce the community to local volunteer firefighters. How does a pizza shop do that and make this a win-win promotion for everyone? Answer this question: What’s in it for me?



Fire company: I will sell my signature pizza for $9.11, donating the entire amount to the volunteer fire company.

Community: Community members get a great deal on a pizza, plus we have firemen check their smoke detector and provide them with a fresh battery or smoke detector, if needed.

Me: I involve myself in an event with benefits.

A major part of the planning was to locate a co-sponsor to provide the smoke detectors. Enter Nationwide, the Kengersky Insurance Agency.

“I look forward to our involvement each year,” says Nationwide’s Matthew E. Kengersky. “Scott’s hard work and generosity have been the keys to nine years of success doing the event. The direct marketing exposure is substantial, and the goodwill is enormous. Both current and prospective customers give me wonderful feedback.”

Did I mention that I was up to my elbows in dough? The 2010 event sold 3,072 Big Daddy pizzas (24” x12”), a 25 percent increase over 2009. The week before the event, I have to make projections for sales and supplies needed. Unfortunately, I don’t have storage for that amount of food. Once again it is back to the community. The fire department and I both realize that the people we serve have to be ‘wowed’.

It is not uncommon for people to support the fire department. Doing it in an uncommon way has made people see my business in a new light.

“The fact that one business cares enough to step outside of their normal role of selling food and making a profit, and step into the role of fire prevention and fund-raising, is just plain amazing in today’s economy,” says Scott Depp, Chief Central Fire Department. “I believe that Scott’s business continues to grow — not just on this one day, but throughout the year — because of the customer loyalty he has created with this event. This community has chosen to support his business by being repeat customers and telling others to frequent his business.” This event has gained national attention and plenty of free publicity for me and my town. Together, we have equipped more than 2,000 homes with new smoke detectors and made sure that another 1,000 detectors had fresh batteries. In 2002, we raised $5,800. In 2010, we raised $30,000 in this one-day event. In 2002, we had two impinger ovens running from 2 p.m. till 8 p.m. Now we have a triple deck oven, plus a rented pizza trailer, cranking from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. to meet the demand. By the third year, ‘Pizza and Prevention’ had become our own holiday of sorts. Now we designate the first Saturday in October for the event.

Organize, plan and consult with others in your community. Use every avenue available to you to do your best. If you do, you will reap the benefits (whether they are profits, accolades or just feeling good knowing your business was a catalyst in making a difference).❖

Scott Anthony is a Fox’s Pizza Den franchisee in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He is a monthly contributor to Pizza Today.

What makes a Sicilian pizza a Sicilian pizza? In two words: shape and thickness. A true Sicilian pizza is rectangular and has a crust that is a little less than a half-inch thick.

How do I know this? Because next door to my boyhood home in upstate New York there was an Italian bakery that made Sicilian pizza. The bakery made great Italian bread, but it also made incredibly delicious Sicilian pizza. The same dough used to make the Italian bread was used to make the pizza. The dough was pressed into a full sheet rectangular pan and smeared (smeared, not drowned) with a puree of tomatoes. Next came a light shower of dried oregano followed by a medium shower of grated Romano cheese. And just before going into the oven, a drizzle of olive oil over the surface. The remembrance of that good pizza past has never left me. So I also know Sicilian pizza as Italian Bakery Pizza. In Palermo, Italy, it is called sfi nciuni. If you like the idea of adding a Sicilian pizza to your offerings, here is how I suggest you go about it. I would only get into the full sheet size if you are doing catering. Also, going full-sheet depends on the style and size of your oven. Pan sizes: a full sheet pan measures 18 inches by 26 inches across the top. A half-size measures 18 inches by 13 inches. A quarter-size pan measures 13 inches x 9 inches. Because the sides of the pans slope, deduct 1⁄4-inch for the true bottom dimensions.

I would start with a half sheet pan or even a quarter sheet pan (the quarter-size pan would be ideal for delivery). From those two sizes I can cut the pizza into squares and sell by the slice or sell the whole blooming pan.

I can make Sicilian pizza in just about any style of oven, be it conveyor, deck or rotating. The exception would be a wood-fired oven (the extended baking time, because of the thickness of the crust, makes it nearly impossible to use a wood-fired oven).

Here are the Basics for a half-size pan: 

The dough. If you sell a deep-dish (a.k.a. pan) pizza now, or if you are using a low-protein fl our for your dough, you are pretty well set to go. The only requirement now is to think thick. OK, think of it this way: after baking, the finished thickness of a Sicilian pizza is about the same as that for focaccia. I want the crust of my Sicilian pizza to be 1⁄2-inch thick after it is fully baked. Can you go with a crust that is less than 1⁄2-inch thick and still call it Sicilian? Yes, but don’t push it too far. How much dough will you need for a half-size pan? About 30-32 ounces. 
The tomatoes: I use an all-purpose ground tomato right out of the can. You will need about 2 cups of tomatoes. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon oregano over the tomatoes.  The cheese. I use is grated Romano. Go with 3⁄4 cup of it, and that will get the job done just fine. 
To finish: drizzle about 1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil over the tomatoes and cheese. 
Bake time: Bake for 15-20 minutes at 450 F. (Bear in mind that bake time will vary relative to oven type and size).

Dough Recipe

Yield: one half-sheet pan Sicilian pizza

2 teaspoons active dry yeast
11⁄4 cups warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1⁄4 cup olive oil
4 cups low protein fl our (11-12 percent)

In the mixing bowl, combine the yeast, water, sugar, salt and oil. Whisk to combine. With the mixer running, add the fl our 1 cup at a time. Mix at medium speed for 4-5 minutes (add a little more fl our if the dough is too wet). The dough should be soft, yet not sticky.

Give the dough one full rise of about 2 hours (or overnight in the cooler). Brush a half-sheet pan with olive oil. Press the dough across the bottom of the pan. Now flip the dough once to get some of the oil onto the top of the dough. Now press the dough completely across the bottom of the pan and into the raised edge of the pan. The dough should be about 1⁄8-inch thick at this point. Cover the pan completely with a damp cloth. Let rise for up to an hour in the pan. Push the dough once more into the bottom and sides of the pan.

Now add the tomatoes, herbs (basil and oregano if you choose) and grated Romano. Bake.

Variation: after the dough has had a second rise, lay slices of mozzarella over the dough to cover. Now add the tomatoes and the herbs (you can replace the dried herbs with a chiffonade of fresh basil). Sprinkle (liberally) grated Romano over the tomatoes. Drizzle some olive oil over the cheese and tomatoes. Bake. You can slide the pizza out of the pan half-way through the bake time, and finish it off on the stone for a crispier crust.

Pat Bruno is Pizza Today’s resident chef and a regular contributor. He is the former owner and operator of a prominent Italian cooking school in Chicago and is a food critic for the Chicago Sun- Times.

Tired of the classic Pizza Margherita? Have you had it with all of those (fi ll in the blank) “Lover’s pizzas”? It’s time to move on and get creative. Here is a menu of show-stopping, delicious pizzas that are easy to make (three or four well-chosen toppings at best). And, most of these pizzas sport a relatively low food cost ... yet you can easily charge a bit more. These 11 pizzas will definitely set you apart from the crowd (and crowded) pizza market. In each of these, where a sauce is called for, use the tomato(es) or pizza sauce you are currently using. That way, you are good to go once you assemble the toppings that I am suggesting for each specialty pizza. Put the toppings on the pizza shell/crust in the order shown for each pizza. As it pertains to vegetables used as a topping, you already know that I am a fan of cooking or sautéing vegetables to develop the flavor (and in most instances to reduce the amount of moisture that might end up on the finished pizza). 

 Pizza Campagnola: tomato sauce, fi or di latte mozzarella, sautéd wild mushrooms, smoked mozzarella, fresh oregano

 Pizza Primavera: tomato sauce, fi or di latte mozzarella, sautéd mushrooms, cherry tomatoes (halved), kalamata olives, chiffonade of fresh basil, extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)

 Pizza Diavolo: Tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella, crushed red pepper fl akes, coarsely chopped spicy salami

 Pizza alla Arugula: thin slices of provolone, shaved Pecorino cheese, shaved prosciutto, arugula (the arugula and prosciutto are added after the pizza comes out of the oven). Drizzle of EVOO over the arugula and prosciutto

 Ham & Cheese Pizza: half and half combination of shredded mozzarella and provolone, generous amount of shaved ham, another layer of mozzarella and provolone

 Pizza Provencale: crushed plum tomatoes, herbes de Provence, pesto sauce, shredded Asiago or fontina cheese

 Pizza Mexicana: ground turkey sautéd with cumin, onion and jalapeño, thick and chunky medium (heat) salsa, black beans, 50/50 combo shredded Monterey Jack and cheddar, cilantro garnish

 Beans & Greens Pizza: escarole (or baby spinach) sautéd in olive and garlic with cannellini beans, crushed red pepper flakes, shredded mozzarella

 White Clam Pizza: Garlic oil, thyme, chopped clams, clam juice, crushed red pepper flakes, grated Parmesan

 Pizza al Funghi: crushed plum tomatoes, roasted Portobello, mushrooms, oregano, grated Parmesan, shredded mozzarella/provolone




Pancetta and Potato Pizza

Essentially, this is known as a white pizza (no tomato sauce). White pizzas are growing in popularity, and they offer a pleasing change from a tomato-based pizza.

Yield: one 14-inch pizza (scale up in direct proportion)

1⁄4 pound lean pancetta or (see chef’s note) chopped
2 tablespoons garlic-infused olive oil
1 large redskin potato (about 3⁄4 pound), peeled and sliced almost paper-thin
1⁄3 cup chopped scallion, white part only
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons (or to taste) crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

In a sauté pan set over medium heat, cook the pancetta until it renders most of its fat and starts to get crispy. Reserve in the pan. Brush the crust with the garlic oil. Arrange the potatoes over the crust up to the border in one layer (overlapping them if necessary). Sprinkle the scallions over the potatoes. Sprinkle on the rosemary, thyme and red pepper flakes.

Pour the reserved pancetta, including the fat in the pan, evenly over the pizza. Sprinkle on the Parmesan. Bake. Chef’s note: you can replace the pancetta with Genoa salami or soppressata (spicy smoked pork sausage). If you use either of these, there is no need to saute them first. Just coarsely chop either one and scatter the pieces over the pizza before baking. 

Pat Bruno is Pizza Today’s resident chef and a regular contributor. He is the former owner and operator of a prominent Italian cooking school in Chicago and is a food critic for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Bravo Broccoli!

Broccoli works well in pasta and on salads, but what about pizza? Not only does it add taste, but it also boosts the nutritional value of pizza. To use, blanche broccoli in boiling water for four to five minutes, then submerge it in cold water to protect the color. You’re going to want to chop it evenly to spread it over the pizza. Remember that the crown has the most flavor and easiest texture for consumption. Try creating a vegetable “Primavera” pizza with loads of veggies for a healthy alternative.

Keep it Contained

Prep tables are the backbone of your restaurant. It’s here that you house all of the readied ingredients needed to make your restaurant run smoothly. Take a good look at how the compartments latch. Pay attention to the mechanisms used for closure. Magnetic closures tend to break less than those with latches, but they can sometimes pop up accidentially. Train your staff to ensure they’re closing compartments tightly when using the prep table to keep ingredients from drying out. Finally, be sure to keep the gaskets clean. When they become brittle, it’s time for replacement.

Taste versus Texture

We all know that nuts, pine nuts in particular, are the quintessential ingredient in a homemade pesto sauce, but did you know that it doesn’t have to be that way? The key is to maintain a pesto’s integrity by creating that smooth tasting, gritty textured sauce that coats pasta like a warm hug. To create a variation of traditional pesto, try replacing pines nuts with walnuts. You can also leave a recipe’s cheese coarsely ground to enhance the texture. Finally, don’t overlook the power of veggies. Finely diced carrots, zucchini and celery add a unique fl avor to pesto. Bon appetit!

Short Staffed

Let’s pretend you’ve had a couple of servers call –– or text –– that they won’t be coming in for today’s lunch rush. Although you’re going to be short-staffed, there’s no reason why your manager can’t step in and cover a table or two. If managers are going to oversee a staff, they need to be able to smoothly step into place when there’s a gap. Cross-training is great, but your managers shouldn’t be above pitching in when needed.