check this link out

[widespreadpizza]

Hey all, got the call today that my permit is all set so now onto setting my floor! while searching for some opinions on dome thickness/mass I ran into this link over on the pizzamaking.com board. Brick Pizza Restaurant Ovens: Peter Moore Masonry
if you read through his site, he seems to do thinks a little differently, at least on his restaraunt ovens. he mentions the use of soapstone hearth and high duty firebrick in the dome.. Im sure some of you have heard of him before but I hadnt. Its crazy that while reading his site I realized that the lui lui oven is where i live! I have been there several times! There pizza is pretty good, now ill have to go back and try it again. If you notice , he uses the firebrick on end and claims dome temps of 1600-1800 degrees. Is this more of a bread /all purpose oven design? I have been debating on my dome thickness for a week or so now. I am worried that 5 inches will be too thick to heat up real hot real fast, and am considering using 1/3 bricks instead of half. then I stumble across a guy using the whole brick! My main goal is pizza in 90 seconds, anything else the oven will do well is just a bonus. Can anyone help me steer me in the right direction on mass. I would appreciate it . Thanks -marc

[maver]

I used to live in Lebanon, NH, and have eaten at Lui Lui's a few times, but I don't remember a brick oven there. I checked their website, and apparently it was there when I was. It was forgettable fare - we enjoyed a place in Lebanon called Sweet Tomatoes quite a bit.

I presume when he talks of cooking 10-12 14 inch pizza in 3 1/2 - 4 minutes he means 5-6 at a time for about 2" each? Your question of thickness needs to consider the type of use. For a restaurant, a thicker brick will help keep the oven hot longer, and for continuous (daily) use may reduce cooling significantly between firings - I bet they can use the residual heat in the am to bake bread, then fire for pizza after. For home use, thin is in - you don't want to allow 4 hours for heat up, you want an hour or less. You'll be able to cook pizza in the 90 second range with a pompeii oven with split bricks. 1/3 brick should allow a faster heat up and will not affect your ability to reach high heat. The only possible tradeoff is less retained heat for e.g. bread making. But an oven of firebrick splits has more than enough retained heat, so I predict a 1/3 brick oven will be fine - we're waiting here for feedback on performance with some of the thinner ovens that have been built recently.

Marc

[dmun]

Am I reading something wrong? At 800 degrees f. doesn't a pizza turn into charcoal in 3 1/2 minutes? I suspect that huge mass isn't getting very hot at all.

[james]

Exactly. I had a pizza with Michael, and I looked over at the table next to ours and said, "his is a little darker, I like that." To which Michael said, "the different between your pizza and his is a couple of seconds. It's hard to control." A few seconds past that and you have charcoal. Hmmm.
James

[james]

Widespread,
If heat up time and holding high heat for pizza are priority one, then a thinner dome would be a good idea.
James

[maver]

Originally Posted by dmun

Am I reading something wrong? At 800 degrees f. doesn't a pizza turn into charcoal in 3 1/2 minutes? I suspect that huge mass isn't getting very hot at all.

See my post above, I think they must be talking about batches - capacity per 3 1/2 - 4" based on the size of the oven. At 800 it should be done in roughly 2 minutes or a little less.

Widespread, can you get us more details about the oven use next time you visit that restaurant? Bring an infrared thermometer if you have one handy so you can take a hearth reading

[widespreadpizza]

Im real tempted to go talk to them and, I do have an infared that will fit in my pocket, and I do know how not to ask if stuff is okay. Do you really think a place in my town is doing things this correctly, and Im not there once a week? I will head down there next time i get a chance to stop in during the quiet hours and talk things over. -marc