- You know I feed this to people on tour sometimes.
And if I say we're gonna eat a fried pizza,
they think it's gonna be like, Kentucky Fried Pizza.
You know what I mean? - Yeah.
- Oily and greasy.
My name is Scott.
I live and breathe pizza.
Old school pizza maker Mark is a pizza purist.
- This is not pizza. (buzzer)
It's not pizza. (buzzer)
I'm about to kick you out.
- I'm trying to bring him the craziest pizzas I can find.
They all claim to be pizza, but are they "Really Dough?"
You know these Naples style pizzerias
where it's like huge and puffy on the outside?
- [Mark] This will puff up in the oven.
- I eat your pizza all the time
and the outside's flatter than a lot of the other ones.
It's got a dry crunch.
- Not it's not.
- It doesn't get the airy kind of thing going on.
- Yeah it does.
That's why I roll it out.
- Like, every time I see you do it,
I wonder do you buy a specific wine bottle?
- You want to try it?
- Yeah, of course I want to try it man.
(angelic music)
- [Mark] You gotta caress it.
- OK, now you're getting weird.
The Naples guys, they won't - No.
- touch this unless it's just their hands directly.
- Correct.
- Although they're doing weird stuff.
They don't even bake the pizza, they're frying the pizza.
You ever had that?
It's a cool thing.
They do it at Kesté.
- Not pizza.
- Such a stickler.
- It's like, - I've had fried calzones.
- But you've never had a fried pizza.
- No.
- You're such a good pizza maker,
but you've had like no pizza.
- They got me chained to this table.
- I'll bring you one if you let me drink
out of this bottle of wine.
- It's all yours.
- For real?
It better be the good stuff.
- It's the good stuff.
(drum roll)
- So I think Mark's definition of pizza
is based on what he had growing up in Brooklyn.
The style we're gonna get in the Financial District
at Kesté is what you would have had growing up in Naples
like 300 years ago.
So we're gonna try the fried Pizza Montanara
and see if he thinks it's pizza.
I just came to see Roberto.
Oh, hell ya.
That's what we're gonna get.
So many obstacles in here.
That is not what we're getting, but it's still good.
Wow.
Quite a reveal.
Hey, Roberto.
- Hey, Scott.
- What's going on brother?
- I see man, you're always making dough.
- I'm glad you got a lot of dough on you
'cause I am here for a pizza obviously.
- Mark and I are eating a bunch of pizza,
you know how Mark's kinda like a little set in his ways.
I'm trying to expand his horizons.
- Yeah, so it's a tough one,
but I feel like if I feed him the Montanara
with the fried crust and the roasted tomato,
I think that's like close enough to what he thinks is pizza
and far enough that it's a little bit interesting for him.
- Sounds good.
Thank you.
- You're the best.
- I'm gonna go get a glass of wine too.
I always know I'm in good hands in Roberto's kitchen.
But today, I started to doubt whether Mark would consider
the dough, which is fried first, to be fit for pizza.
- Pizza tastes best served right out of the oven.
500 degrees across the board.
No exceptions.
- I should have taken some drugs before this
because I'm too tense right now.
(dramatic music)
- Hey, Scott.
- Alright, Roberto.
So awesome man.
- Yeah man, classic Montanara.
Which I had never heard of until a few years ago.
Standard pizza dough right?
There's nothing different about the dough.
- It's not like this is a new invention.
You're frying the dough, pulling it out,
topping it and then that big difference
then hoist it back into the oven for a few seconds.
- I gotta just take a quick peek at this.
It's crust on a base.
Followed by a sauce.
And cheese directly on top.
- I want to eat this man,
we've been talking about it for 45 minutes.
- That smoked buffalo mozzarella.
- Yeah.
- Different game.
So, I mean this looks like a pizza to me.
But, I'm from America, I'm from New Jersey
and I'm proud of it.
Jersey strong.
Pizza or not a pizza?
What is something need to have or be or to look like
for it to be called a pizza?
- Yeah but I'm not from Naples.
No, no, you're not from Naples either.
You're outside of Naples.
- What I'm wondering what you say
to the typical American customer
and they say that that's not a pizza.
- It's fast.
- Are you saying you go to a New York style pizzeria
and it's not pizza.
- Oh, you're so Naples specific I love it.
- Like this is not something you would have gotten
in Naples 100 years ago.
- No, it's, it is a pizza,
by look and by touch and by taste absolutely,
even though it challenges what most people think
about a pizza which is that it's dough
that gets topped and then baked.
- So I've had Kesté's fried pizza, the Montanara
which is definitely a pizza.
But, we've gotta fry one more up, bring it back to Brooklyn
and see what Mark thinks.
(glass clicking)
Salut.
I'm not into it.
Just a little too sharp for me.
Let's go do another one.
(upbeat music)
Alright Mark, I got the fried pizza.
Check it out.
- It looks like pizza.
Alright, here goes.
- How did you leave the best slice here?
- It's pretty thick the crust.
I figured it would be a little bit more crispy.
- What's the read on your palate?
Is there, I mean?
- Scott, it tastes like pizza.
(laughing)
- This is a pizza to you?
- Pizza.
(dinging) (fireworks)
Does that come out of a wood oven?
- It did.
I mean they finished it off in the wood oven.
- Do they?
- After the toppings go on
they do the melt in the wood fire.
- It's fantastic.
- It's awesome right?
You gonna get a fryer?
- No.
(upbeat music)
- Mark and I agree, the Montanara from Kesté
is absolutely 100% a pizza.
- If anybody was to tell me this wasn't a pizza,
I'd tell them they don't know pizza.
- So next time you're in the Financial District
drop by and try it for yourself.
Thanks for watching Thrillist,
we'll see you next time on "Really Dough?"
He's good at frying stuff.
- Oh really?
- Have you had his arancini?
Dude, he's doing a fritini.
The mac & cheese, the fried mac and cheese balls.
- Well, why can't you just call
it fried mac and cheese balls?
- Ask him?
Why you yelling at me?
Don't shoot the messenger.