Palak Desai, an undergraduate student from Johnson and Wales University USA and a self-confessed food lover had always dreamt of opening her own restaurant. But post some recce and research on the internet she realized that just understanding the commerce of this was not enough she needed to learn all the hacks of the business she wanted to carry out. Being an Italian cuisine buff, she flew to Italy to study Italian cuisine! And it was there that she zeroed-in on what she exactly wanted to offer to her clientele –THE perfect fusion of Italian and Indian Dishes

Palak returned to India fully-geared up to action her dream project but unfortunately the pandemic and the multiple phases of the lockdown to arrest the same floored her aspirations. But destiny stepped in and the mother of one of Palak’s friends who was getting married in the ‘new normal’ commissioned her to cook for the small group of guests. Palak immediately agreed and then gradually through word-of-mouth referrals orders started trickling in. 

Then with orders came business planning. Palak decided that instead of offering an entire menu it would be more practical and niche to offer a single item; and with pizzas being an all-time favourite cutting across age, gender and social strata bars she and her mother decided on preparing pizzas and that’s how Pjazzy’s Pizza took form.

Sharing the story behind the name Palak says “Pjazzy has been my Instagram handle since 2013 so I just added the word ‘Pizza’ and it had a nicering to the name so that’s how we decided to go ahead with the name Pjazzy’s Pizza”.

There are many features that make Pjazzy’s Pizzas stand apart from the renowned pizza brands – primarily the base, edges and crust of the pizza; the recipes of the sauce which are a closely-guarded family secret; then again the fresh from the oven supply as they cook all the orders on the very same day that they receive them; moreover as there is no system of storage everything is freshly baked and cooked at Pjazzy’s.

Palak shares “My mum is my business partner and I have inherited my cooking skills from her. She helps me with everything at Pjazzy’s!”

While the thumb rule is abstaining from using the wheat base for preparing the pizzas, the niche spread of Pjazzy’s includes -

Veg Out: Onions, Peppers, Olives, Jalapenos

Red Vine: Tomato, Basil,Sundried Tomatoes. This one is Palak’s brainchild and quite popular too!

What’s Bacon: Bacon,Onions,Jalapenos, BBQ Sauce

Yes Vegan:  Sundried Tomatoes, Basil, Olives, Vegan Cheese

Build Your Own Pizza: Upto 4 toppings from -Tomato, Basil, Onions, Pepper, Sundried Tomatoes, Olives, Mushrooms, Corn, Bacon, Jalapenos, Zucchini, Pesto Drizzle, Ranch Drizzle, Olive Oil,Garlic Oil,Barbeque Sauce

The thrust at Pjazzy’s Pizzas is on safety, hygiene and contactless delivery so - the outlet is home-based and has a delivery window through which people collect their takeaways; and everything is prepared in-house including the Sun Dried Tomatoes and the Vegan Cheese. 

Palak signs off with “This brand is a baby born out of the pandemic and as of now has no future because I am returning to the States and will be soon getting my green card. Where I shall first learn and work under some professionals and then start my own business out there…and the experience gained here will be of great help to me!”

 

Best Seller Recipe: Classic Pizza Margherita

Ingredients  All Purpose Flour – 4 Cups Semolina – One-fourth Cup Active Dry Yeast – Two-and-a-half Teaspoons Salt – As per taste  Sugar – 2 Teaspoons  Lukewarm Water – As required Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 2 Tablespoons Semolina (for dusting and rolling) – 3 Tablespoons Other Ingredients for Assembling Homemade Pizza and Pasta Sauce Mozzarella Cheese Basil Leaves (for garnishing) Dried Oregano (as required) Red Chilli Flakes (as required)   Method Mix flour, semolina, salt, sugar and yeast in a mixing bowl and make a deep well in the centre Add water and one tablespoon of olive oil in the flour mixture. Mix everything well to make a soft but not sticky dough. Add more water if the dough is still dry Apply the remaining oil onto your palms and knead fit or 10 minutes by hand on a lightly floured work surface Cover the pizza dough loosely with oiled cling-film, making sure it is airtight. Leave in a warm place for about two hours until doubled Once the pizza dough has doubled in size, pull it out of the mixing bowl,punch the dough a couple of times and divide it into four small dough portions Preheat the oven to 220 C and place the pizza stone into the cold oven. Let it gradually heat and achieve the temperature for approximately 10 minutes While the preheating happens, the next step is to prepare the pizzas – Sprinkle some semolina onto the working surface On the semolina surface, roll out the dough thin, into a large circle approximately eight inches or the shape of your choice using a rolling pin. The dough would rise in the oven, so roll it as thin as possible Run the fork all around the middle leave half inch around the edges. This process will remove any bubbles/air Pull out the hot pizza stone and carefully place it on a hot plate. Sprinkle some semolina on the stone and then place the rolled pizza dough on it Gently brush a layer of olive oil and to the base with pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese Bake this for 10-15 minutes until the crust turns golden brown or the cheese has melted. Allow it to cool down for two-three minutes Garnish with basil leaves, oregano and chilli flakes. Serve this cheesy homemade pizza hot!