Chef Matthew Cutolo, the Link in the Chain

Welcome back to Pizza Quest!

I’m not from New York so I’ve missed a lot of the legendary lore that is embedded in most New Yorkers’ DNA. I’ve never been to Rao’s, Katz’s Deli only once, when I was a kid visiting relatives, never even been to Coney Island, which is ground zero for so much of the lore that I feasted on vicariously via my comedy heroes Neil Simon and Mel Brooks.. So, when I met Chef Matthew Cutolo of the legendary Gargiulo’s Restaurant for this episode of Pizza Quest, I had a lot of catching up to do. Chef Matthew is the next in line, the link in a long chain of Gargiulo and Russo family cooks who have kept the legacy of Gargiulo’s alive for over 100 years, where it remains as one of the bucket list stops for any visitors to Coney Island, as well as for thousands of loyal regulars. And now they’ve added an outdoor pizza garden with wood-fired ovens, which you’ll hear about in this conversation. Matthew’s mission now is to not only protect and enhance the legacy, but to continually find ways to keep this old world Italian American restaurant relevant during this new age of dining adventurism. If you’re already one of the initiates and have been to Gargiulo’s, this will be like a walk down memory lane with a trusted old friend. But, it’s also a peek behind the curtain of what it takes to keep a classic restaurant fresh and shiny in an age that is always in search of the newest fresh and shiny. As for me, I can’t wait to get up to Coney Island and have the Gargiulo’s experience, especailly during the summer when the pizza garden is in full bloom. See you there….

Part 1

Part 2