{"id":1082,"date":"2012-10-05T04:57:56","date_gmt":"2012-10-05T08:57:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fornobravo.com\/pizzaquest\/2012\/10\/05\/montanara-starita\/"},"modified":"2012-10-05T04:57:56","modified_gmt":"2012-10-05T08:57:56","slug":"montanara-starita","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fornobravo.com\/pizzaquest\/montanara-starita\/","title":{"rendered":"Montanara Starita"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is not a restaurant review!<\/p>\n

This is a selfish blog posting about being on my own little pizza quest and running into one of the masters in the world of artisan pizza. \u00a0I had been trying all week, while I was working in NYC a while back, to fit in some pizza questing and I had the opportunity to visit one of New York’s newest ventures.<\/p>\n

Don Antonio by Starita<\/em><\/strong> opened recently and is getting some rave reviews and, now I know, that’s for good reason. \u00a0It’s a new venture by Pizzeria Keste<\/em> owner, Roberto Caporuscio, and Antonio Starita, who owns one of Naples’ most famous pizzerias, called Pizzeria Starita,<\/em> which is 110 years old (the pizzeria, not Antonio). \u00a0I have been a personal fan of Roberto’s for some time having visited Keste <\/em>on nearly every one of my visits to New York since it opened. \u00a0His pizzas have not only pushed beyond good to great, but very well may have reached a new level in my book. \u00a0They are what Peter Reinhart calls “Memorable,” here at Pizza Quest. \u00a0Memorable is something more than just “great”. \u00a0If you remember a very good pizza you had, you can describe it and even imagine the taste. \u00a0But, a memorable pizza is one that goes one or more steps further and makes sort of a time stamp in your mind and is experienced and remembered on a totally different level. \u00a0You can seemingly taste and almost experience it again as you recall it. \u00a0I don’t mean to gush, but that’s just what I feel about Keste<\/em>. \u00a0Roberto’s dough and crust is that good.<\/p>\n

The fried pizza dough was light and puffy with a crispy and chewable crust.<\/p><\/div>Now back to me\u2026my window opened and opportunity called!\u00a0 I had time to escape the office for lunch; I bolted for the door. \u00a0I took the subway, which popped me up only a block or so from Don Antonio.<\/em> I went in and sat at the bar for lunch. \u00a0I had a limited amount of time and knew that, while here, I had to try the signature pizza called the “Montanara Starita<\/em>” which is made with a lightly fried pizza dough. \u00a0Scott Weiner, of Scott’s Pizza Tours, had told me that if I only had time for one pizza there that I had to try that one.<\/p>\n

I asked the bartender if Roberto happened to be in today. \u00a0Unfortunately, he wasn’t. \u00a0I ordered a salad and my Monatanara.<\/em> As I ate my salad, I overheard someone say “Roberto!”\u00a0 After a few minutes I asked the bartender again and as it turns out Roberto was there (what am I, chopped liver?). \u00a0When his conversation wrapped up behind me, I introduced myself and was lucky enough that either Pizza Quest, or Peter Reinhart’s name got me into a conversation and,, later, back into the kitchen! \u00a0I was about halfway through my Montanara <\/em>when Roberto came to sit with me. \u00a0We talked about, what else, pizza. \u00a0I went on a bit about how much I liked Keste and enjoyed the fact that I was eating a pizza with him.<\/p>\n

Right to Left: Anthony Stagliano, Giorgia Caporuscio, Roberto Cabruscio, Eduardo Duran<\/p><\/div>He asked me back to the kitchen to meet his daughter Georgia, who was the pizzaiola working the oven. \u00a0We talked bit more back there with his staff and Georgia took me over to watch her make a Montanara pizza. \u00a0It’s simple. \u00a0Spread the dough and drop it in the fryer. \u00a0It sits in there for a few minutes. \u00a0She would touch it here and there, pushing one side, or the other under the oil as it floated to the top and turned it a couple of times before pulling it out to drain a little before she topped it. \u00a0At this point it’s prepped like any other pizza. \u00a0Add the sauce. \u00a0Add the Cheese and some basil and it goes into the oven.<\/p>\n

As I was about to leave Roberto asked me how I found the Montanara. As I began to tell him, I referenced how I first found Keste’s dough, he misunderstood me and thought I was trying to tell him how I got to Don Antonio! \u00a0I said, “No, no! I understand!” \u00a0We then discussed the pizza. \u00a0I had the feeling he was really interested to know what I thought about it, not because I was an expert or anything, but because it was something “new”. \u00a0When I was at the Pizza Expo in Las Vegas months earlier, there was all sorts of chatter about fried dough being the next rage. \u00a0I think Roberto was, and is, curious about this new trend, one that is apparently not new at all. \u00a0It’s just newly in fashion.<\/p>\n

The dough gets dropped into the fryer for about a minute. It will be finished in the wood fired oven.<\/p><\/div>So, how did I find the Montanara – fried pizza? \u00a0It was my first fried pizza, to be certain, and I honestly didn’t know what to expect. \u00a0I found the Montanara to be a unique pizza experience. \u00a0The dough was lighter than I thought it would be. \u00a0It was puffy and crunchy, but still soft. \u00a0The tomatoes were bright and the sweet acidity worked well with and against the dough, which had a buttery quality to it due to the frying. \u00a0The pizza was rich, but balanced. The smoked buffalo mozzarella was delicious and there to be tasted, but wasn’t overwhelming or in a competition with the tomatoes and dough. Then there was the fresh basil which came in with a nice aromatic finish to this ensemble.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A little trip into the fire to finish it all up…<\/p><\/div>I found this pizza interesting.\u00a0 Okay, I found this pizza to be delicious!\u00a0 But most importantly, I found this experience of getting to eat this pizza with Roberto, and watch Georgia making one while standing with us in the kitchen by the wood burning oven, well, I found it memorable. <\/em> Maybe “memorable” is about more than just great food. \u00a0Maybe memorable is about great food, plus good people, a unique experience, and maybe even simply great timing!<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Mantanara Starita!<\/p><\/div>I’m still haunted by Roberto’s traditional wood oven baked doughs, but was happily surprised by this “new” variation of an old deep-fried classic!<\/p>\n

{gallery}donantonio{\/gallery}<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 This is not a restaurant review! This is a selfish blog posting about being on my own little pizza quest and running into one of the masters in the world of artisan pizza. \u00a0I had been trying all week, while I was working in NYC a while back, to fit in some pizza questing and I had the opportunity to visit one of New York’s newest ventures. Don Antonio…Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":351,"featured_media":1077,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-c45-guest-bloggers"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMontanara Starita - Pizza Quest with Peter Reinhart<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fornobravo.com\/pizzaquest\/montanara-starita\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Montanara Starita - Pizza Quest with Peter Reinhart\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u00a0 This is not a restaurant review! 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