This article was originally published in Boro Magazine in February 2019.
On a Saturday morning in January, I rolled up my sleeves and took a seat at the curved marble counter at Macoletta, a new pizza spot on 24th Avenue. I was there to eat pizza, of course, but first, I would learn to make it.
My foodie sister and I joined two couples, who were also there for a pizza-making class led by owner Walid Idriss and his staff. Although we all came from different backgrounds and neighborhoods, we had one thing in common—a love of the Italian classic.
Idriss, who opened Macoletta in June, told us his story as he guided us through the process from the kitchen, which is located directly behind the counter. It’s an open-concept space that allows all guests to see the cooks in action and connects to Idriss’ journey to opening the restaurant. He was born in Algeria and worked in finance for nearly a decade, and acknowledges that he isn’t who you’d expect as the owner. Yet he fell in love with making pizza and its ability to naturally gather the community.
“I love getting people together,” Idriss said. “Making pizza — that makes me happy. Instead of looking at the market, doing things I’m not interested in.”
When Idriss came to New York for school, he always worked in restaurants on the side to fund his education. As manager of Madison Bistro, he hired, then befriended the head of food and wine, Fabio Rebeschini, who is from Italy. Two years ago, Idriss temporarily left his job at a bank and went on a two-month trip to visit Rebeschini there.
Idriss discovered his love of Neapolitan pizza, which hails from the south of the country. It is smaller than a standard pie and features a fluffy crust and simple, fresh ingredients. He traveled throughout Italy and worked in restaurants to master the skill.
“I was a humble student,” Idriss said. "I worked for free. If you put in the time, people are willing to teach you.”
He worked in Rebeschini’s bakery in Camposampiero, called Macola, in addition to prepping to open his Astoria eatery in other ways, such as meeting manufacturers. Fabio opened a smaller version next door called Macoletta, which is where Idriss’ own restaurant gets its name. Although the friends’ restaurants are thousands of miles away, they share a community-centric feel.
To help fund the venture, which Idriss said was three times more expensive than he expected, he turned to Kickstarter. Most of the $20,000 he raised came from friends and family, but 20% came from strangers all over the world. He originally offered the pizza-making class as a perk to those who donated, but then decided to open it to the neighborhood. He is inspired and driven by the complex, yet simple process of making pizza, and enjoys spreading his knowledge.
“Pizza’s not a secret anymore,” he said. “In Italy I was fascinated by how much people are willing to teach you.”
Even in the class itself, the group shared their own cooking experiences and got friendly over the near two hours we were there. My sister swapped cheese-making tips with a couple from Brooklyn, while the couple from Astoria asked Idriss about his dough recipe.
“Pizza’s the ultimate icebreaker,” said Corey Boudreau, who came with his girlfriend, Patricia Holliday. Holliday said the two live near Macoletta and she had enjoyed a meal there before with friends. They already make pizza at home, and came to learn more and enjoy a fun date experience, Holliday said, adding that she was surprised how simple the ingredients were.
Macoletta makes the dough with only Caputo flour, yeast, water, salt and olive oil, Idriss said. The fermentation process takes three days, which includes mixing the ingredients, letting it rest for and hour, refrigerating it for 24 hours, kneading it on the second day and stretching it on the third day. This process accounts for its light texture. Idriss is selective about everything else the restaurant serves. The cappuccino machine is specialized; he uses local Zibetto coffee; gelato is exclusively from nearby Gelato & Co.; beer and wine offerings are either local, like from Big aLICe Brewing, or imported from Italy. He serves Italian craft beer, La Birra Di Meni, which only produces 50,000 bottles each year.
We started pizza-making by stretching the dough on a small pile of flour and pushing the bubbles out to the crust. We topped it lightly with homemade tomato sauce, basil and a few pieces of thick mozzarella. If left to my own devices, I would have drenched the dough in sauce and covered every spot with cheese, but the key ingredient in this class was simplicity.
Staff also advised me to place the cheese on top of the greens to keep them from burning. As Idriss guided us through the process, he answered our questions about how to
make pizza at home. He suggested using fresh ingredients without preservatives.
In Astoria, he recommended products from Rosario’s on 31st Street. Although he doesn’t use sugar in his dough, he said it’s acceptable for home cooks who don’t have a specialized oven.
Idriss treated us to his best-sellers — the Diablo, which features honey and Calabrian chili; the Alberino, which has lamb sausage; and Cara pizza, a vegan option which only has vegetables, oil and balsamic reduction (and is named for his wife). We also tried out a new dessert pizza, a crispy, melt-in-your-mouth dough “sandwich” with warm pistachio Nutella in the middle and powdered sugar sprinkled on top. Suffice it to say, every variation of pizza was delicious — flavorful and fresh, yet light.
Idriss said Macoletta also recently started offering pastas — Alfredo and bolognese — and added salads, beet and burrata.
“We want to add more pasta, develop brunch,” Idriss said. “We like to master every step.”
We watched as Idriss glided the pizza peel under each dough and slid them into the Marana Forni brick oven, which is almost like a pottery wheel for pizza. The massive copper structure has a platform inside that elevates and spins to cook pizza in minutes, which keeps it consistent, and is the only one of its kind in New York City.
It was shipped directly from Italy and “it’s the Ferrari of ovens,” Idriss said. The pizzas came out one by one, and Idriss and his staff assessed them as they placed them along the counter. Mine had a perfectly puffed-up and crispy crust, round shape and just the right amount of toppings. As the least qualified student in the room, my pizza was crowned the best in class — only because of the help I received from the Macoletta team. Like Idriss said from his own experience, anyone can learn to make pizza with the right support system.
Macoletta is located at 28-15 24th Ave.
Comments