28-12-2015

Great pizzerias outside Naples

Francesco Salvo tells about the new trend: even Neapolitans leave town in search of good food

Taking the car and leaving Naples, going to the su

Taking the car and leaving Naples, going to the surrounding towns to have a good pizza. Until a few years ago, it was something unthinkable. Today it happens, thanks to excellent restaurants outside town. Francesco Salvo tells us (with understandable pride) about this new trend, that rewarded him

A few days ago we received the Pizzeria of the Year award from Il Mattino's Mangia & Bevi guide. This acknowledgement indeed rewards a good teamwork and our daily commitment but it also arrives at a significant time and it’s meaningful from a sociological point of view. To appreciate the meaning of this, one needs to understand how Neapolitan pizza is perceived by Neapolitans and not only by them.

Until a few years ago, it was commonly thought that in order to eat a real Neapolitan pizza you necessarily had to go to Naples, the town itself, and to some neighbourhoods in particular. Today, thanks to us and to some other esteemed colleagues/friends such as Franco Pepe, this is no longer the case.

Dismantling this historic habit means opening a new road. Thinking that today many Neapolitans leave the centre of town to eat a good pizza in other places, including San Giorgio a Cremano, fills us with pride, so much so that it was unthinkable until a few years ago. And not just convenience-pizzerias, but for high quality Neapolitan pizza outside the walls of the historic centre: unbelievable. Yet it is something that today is acknowledge by the guide that best interprets the feelings of the people of Naples when it comes to pizza.

One of the specialties offered by the Salvo brothers

One of the specialties offered by the Salvo brothers

The idea that many start to travel from all across Campania and from other regions too, just for the pizza, comforts us, it gratifies our efforts and urges us to be even more committed into building our offer. We believe that the local territory certainly doesn’t have the same appeal of a going for a walk by the seafront in Naples or a visit to the shops and the many cultural events. Especially during the holidays, when thousands of people visit the town’s centre, to the advantage of many restaurants.

Choosing a Neapolitan pizzeria outside Naples for its quality, its specific offer, its pizzas therefore means that you’re strongly attracted only by these elements. Working to become the destination of a journey means working twice as hard as a pizzeria in the heart of Naples. For us it means a spasmodic research on raw materials, a very digestible dough with a long maturation and the flavour of ripe wheat; it means designing a wine list that can charm those with a limited budget – without forsaking quality and respecting our popular soul – but also leaving space for the enjoyment of the enthusiasts who can now dive into 150 wines, including Champagne.

Francesco Salvo at the register

Francesco Salvo at the register

We also need to work on our human resources, constantly giving incentives and training to our staff. Our guys are back from an internship at Osteria Francescana and Don Alfonso. We also need to create a pizzeria system with logistics and staff that can ensure minimum waiting time on peak days. This work requires entrepreneurial sacrifices: you need to think a lot and take one step at a time with your own legs and resources, without looking for shortcuts, basing life on work and family.

Today this acknowledgement coming from Naples makes us clearly understand that the road we took is the right one, though not without struggles.


Chefs' life stories

Men who, for a moment, leave pots and pans to tell us their experience and point of view

by

Francesco Salvo

Born in Naples in 1977, he graduated in 2003 in Building Engineering, but then decided to work in the family pizzeria. He currently manages his Salvo Pizzaioli in San Giorgio a Cremano, In team with his brother Salvatore

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