My trip to Pepe's today

[polishpizza]

This is just a quick set of pics from my visit to Pepe's today.  Been there hundreds of times as a patron but first time since I've become a "pizza chef in training"

This site has been incredibly giving to me and I appreciate that.  I've become a contributing member with a donation.

This is a small contribution for now.

Some pics and notes from my visit.

I had to pick up a to go pie for the home at the front desk so I had 2-3 minutes to walk them make the pies.

I noticed the dough they had getting ready to be stretched was very flat and seemed very wet.  My guess is there we medium balls.  I was very surprised how flat and wet looking they were.

The guy stretching the dough had a large pile of flour right in front of him and he was stretching the dough then folding it over like a calzone and stacking them.  Other then that they have bins and bins of the pre-cut mozz, toppings in bins, etc.  Nothing that I would call out of the ordinary.

The bacon is a large,  The chicken is a medium.  I measured the medium and it was 16-17 inches round.

[dellavecchia]

What is the flavor of the crust like? Is it super chewy?

John

[polishpizza]

hmmm....I'm not sure on the first question as I never really put any thought into it or ate a piece of crust by itself...In general the pies are very tasty/salty for sure...the crust is generally very crunchy with a soft inside....and thin...

[Serpentelli]

You are a lucky man polish! I, like you, have been to Pepe's many times, but not with an eye towards dough hydration, cooking times, etc.

It amazes me just thinking about how different my next visit will be from an observation standpoint.

This site truly is an eye opener.

[polishpizza]

I'm right with you, I am just starting to learn myself...

[scott123]

What is the flavor of the crust like? Is it super chewy?

John, I've had Pepe's a whopping one time but I can tell you that it's very NYish- slightly chewy, a bit puffy, but, because of the dryness of the coal ovens, it's a bit more crisp and rigid, especially on the rim. The biggest difference is that, unlike NY where the texture of the rim is similar to the texture of the crust at the point, Pepe's goes from crunchy to a relatively soft, slightly droopy point.  It's almost like each bite is taking you into a new texture territory.

Now, I did have rim areas that were totally incinerated that I couldn't eat, as can happen frequently with coal, but the bites leading up to them... boy oh boy.

[deb415611]

I'm due for a Pepe's trip. 

[bfguilford]

I'm due for a Pepe's trip. 

I'll meet you there.

Barry

[deb415611]

I'll meet you there.

Barry

you should start a thread & try to set something up, see who else we can get to go

[polishpizza]

How about we put together a field trip to Pepe's for all PM members?

[JConk007]

Count me in On my list for sure !
John

[bfguilford]

Deb and I will work on this (polishpizza, apizza and anybody else who might have any connections with Pepe's or Sally's... PM me if you have any ideas or can work on this, too).

The only issue is that Pepe's, Sally's and Modern (generally seen as The Big 3 in New Haven... Bar is a new, up and comer that is also getting great reviews) don't take reservations, and the lines are usually really long. I'll pay a visit to them and see if they'll make an exception for the PM.com fanatics, or open a little early, or if there's a day of the week/time of day when the lines are generally not as bad.

I'm thinking spring, when waiting in line doesn't involve freezing our mozz off.

Barry