PIZZA MY HEART
SINGAPORE HAS GOOD pizza – and lots of it – but there are multiple reasons why we’re excited about Lucali, a wonderful pizzeria which has been serving Brooklyn’s hungry since 2006. Its founder, Mark Iacono, with no background in pizza, had turned an old candy store into a celebrated institution that’s well-loved by both culinary professionals and A-list celebrities alike. The name Lucali is a mash-up of Louie, the candy store’s proprietor, and Kalista, Iacono’s daughter.
It took him three to four months to perfect a crust that is light, crispy, fluffy and chewy, and not one tweak has been made in the last 15 years. In Brooklyn, you’re likely to find Iacono standing behind a candlelit marble-topped counter, carefully rolling the dough with a wine bottle before stretching it out for the peel.
The same ritual can be experienced here. Singapore’s Lucali, or Lucali BYGB, is a collaboration between Iacono and hospitality expert, Gibran Baydoun, formerly of Momofuku and 1880. You’ll find it at Kallang Rivergreen Building (66 Kampong Bugis, Level M), where chef Ariana Flores is in charge of the pies. A
Los Angeles native and a former executive pastry chef at Osteria Mozza (Singapore and
Los Angeles), Flores flew to Brooklyn to master the art of Lucali from the master himself.
To achieve the same rustic, blistery crust, the pizza is cooked in a wood-fired brick oven designed by the same mason who built Lucali’s oven 15 years ago. What goes on top includes a secret sauce from Iacono’s grandmother, which is slowly reduced for four hours, three kinds of cheeses – low-moisture mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella and Grana Padano – and fresh mounds of basil. Everything else is seasonal, and if you can, go for the sliced porcini or pepperoni, which is best ordered on the side.
www.lucalibygb.com