New York-style pizza restaurant coming to East Austin. Bufalina owner opening Palm Pizza.
After spending the past decade running Austin’s best Neapolitan pizzeria, Bufalina (and Bufalina Due) owner Steven Dilley is turning his attention to New York-style pizza.
The wine connoisseur and former New York city resident plans to open Palm Pizza in September in the small space formerly inhabited by Mission Dogs at 1701 E. Cesar Chavez St.
The restaurant will focus on thin, crispy bottomed pies that define the Big Apple, serving slices and 18-inch pies. The menu will include a salad, sandwich specials and a thicker, airier square slice.
The pizzas will share similar ingredients to those at Bufalina, though, coming out of an electric PizzaMaster, the relatively lighter, crunchier pies will obviously be very different from the pies at Dilley’s original restaurant.
“From the beginning, we knew we wanted a lighter slice that could hold its shape without being tough,” Dilley told the American-Statesman. “It's pretty easy to get a rigid slice with no tip sag if you use strong enough flour, but we want to balance the crisp base with the right chew and tenderness. There are days when we're like, will anyone really notice a difference between all these variations of flours, sauces, oven temps, etc. that we're pouring over? But I hope people will be happy with the final product.”
Chef Grae Nonas, a New Jersey native who helped open the new Bufalina and was an original co-executive chef at Olamaie, consulted on the menu at Palm Pizza. The team also includes Bufalina partner and celebrated sommelier Rania Zayyat, and Clint Elmore, the owner of the late 40 North pizzeria on West 10th Street, who will run day-to-day operations at Palm Pizza.
Dilley, who graduated from the University of Texas, lived in NYC from 2002 to 2010, where he worked as an algorithmic equities trader while indulging his obsession with pizza.
Though he won’t claim one favorite and says he didn’t take any inspiration from a specific pizzeria, Dilley says he’s “a fan of what the newer places have done, approaching things with a fresh eye.” And he’s able to rattle off a list that anyone visiting NYC might want to put in their pocket.
“My favorites were Joe's in the West Village; John's, also in the Village; Lombardi's, Adrienne's Pizza Bar (mainly for the square pie) way downtown,” Dilley said. “Best Pizza in Williamsburg opened right as I moved back, and that place was and is great. I'd also make pilgrimages to the classic spots like Lucali, the original Patsy's, etc. Since I moved back there's been a pizza renaissance up there, kind of like barbecue in Central Texas. Scarr's, L'Industrie, Mama Too, and on and on and on.”
Palm Pizza takes its name from the several palm trees planted on the property by the restaurant’s landlord, a palm tree enthusiast.
Mission Dogs closed at the beginning of 2022, and Dilley signed a lease last summer. He put the NYC spot on the backburner while dealing with delays in opening the latest Cesar Chavez Street iteration of Bufalina just down the street.
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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Bufalina owner opening New York-style pizza restaurant in East Austin
