When New Friends Meet at an Old Favorite

I have been to Di Fara more times than I could remember.  For a short while I would go at least once a week, sometimes more. During the years I have seen it all, long lines, celebrity sightings, heated arguments, even people sharing their pies with strangers.

Recently, when The Pizza Society met at Di Fara for its inaugural outing, I saw a whole new side of the fabled pizzeria, empty.

With just twelve guests on hand Di Fara opened their doors, and I rediscovered the pizza I have loved since my first visit in 2004. Charles Scicolone, co-founder of The Pizza Society and I decided that Di Fara would be the perfect place to launch this new organization. It has everything The Pizza Society values; a great slice, quality ingredients, and a determined pizzaioli.

With the good people at Gilt Groupe helping us to organize and market our private dinner at DiFara, The Pizza Society had officially launched.

Banfi Vintners sponsored the wines for the evening with a flight perfect for Dom’s eclectic pizzas. We began the night welcoming each other and opened a bottle of Centine Bianco. This is a white wine from the southern part of Tuscany, and offered notes of pear and lime with a hint of herbs. It is aged partly in stainless steel tanks, partly in French oak, and then finished for four months of barrel aging. A great aperitif and a very refreshing wine for a warm summer evening.

The night pizzas were divided into three ‘stages’; classics, family favorites, and chef’s choice. Among the standouts were the classic square and round pies, a vegetable pie with red peppers and red onions, imported sundried cherry tomatoes with fresh garlic (a DeMarco family favorite), and my favorite; a square pie topped with imported Calabresi mushrooms and local sausage.

As we began to eat the first round of pizzas, Charles proceeded to pour the Centine Rose, aSangiovese, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon blend. This is a medium bodied wine, with a more complex character but still refreshing and crisp. I thought the Rose’ worked well with the fior di latte and buffala mozzarella cheeses on the square pie.

The pizzas continued throughout the night, and the group was able to eat, drink, and share in their affection for pizza with each other as Dom and his family made us feel completely at home in Di Fara. The night ended with Dom preparing some of his favorite pies, a real treat for this long time Di Fara fan. At this point we opened a Centine Toscana, a red wine with a more spicy character but still clean and approachable finish. I thought this wine paired well with the Reserve Aged Grana Padano cheese that Dom sprinkled liberal handfuls of on some pies.

As guest left with smiles on their faces with full stomachs, not to mention pizza packed in boxes for the following days lunch, we knew The Pizza Society was off to a great start.

After all with great pizza and wine, what could go wrong?

Louis Coluccio is the co founder of The Pizza Society, a dining group dedicated to the art of the pie. When he is not eating pizza, Louis can be found at D. Coluccio and Sons, his family’s Italian specialty food store. He created authenticitalianamerican.com to share his life in food.