QUARTER SHEETS PIZZA CLUB
Aaron Lindell grew up in Michigan. When he was sous chef at the outstanding Cotogna in San Francisco, he’d gild pizzas with very California combinations like lamb sausage and seasonal gypsy peppers. His worlds unite in the Detroit-style pies he now makes with both classic red-saucebased toppings and specials he crowns with sometimes wild, always amazingly cohesive ingredients. The craggy, lacy borders of his rectangular creations approach blackened without ever tasting burnt, and in the best way he has a more generous hand with cheese than many of the Motor City counterparts I’ve tried. Mozzarella tends to slowly flow over the edges, pulling pepperoni cups or snipped basil and Calabrian chiles along with it.
Quarter Sheets began as a pandemic pop-up out of the home in Glendale that Lindell shares with pastry chef Hannah Ziskin, whose complex layer cakes border on otherworldly in their deliciousness. At the end of 2021, they began operating out of a small space in Echo Park that has mostly focused on takeout; the dining room opened recently and a fullfledged menu is slowly filling out with weekly-changing salads and desserts.
All of which is to say: I’ll have more to write about Quarter Sheets not far down the road, but Lindell has nailed his pizza repertoire. If you’re solo, or curious about the breadth of his creations, order an airy, crunchy Sicilian-style slice — but the whole Detroit pie is really the masterpiece.
1305 Portia St., Los Angeles, instagram.com/quartersheets