New York-Style Pies

Zoli's NY Pizza Tavern in Oak Cliff releases menu with unthinkable ingredient

One of the most anticipated restaurant openings this summer, Zoli's Pizza Tavern — the new Northeast-style pizzeria from Cane Rosso owner Jay Jerrier — is slated to open August 6. It's going in the old Bee Enchiladeria space on Davis Street.

Just as Cane Rosso has helped blaze the trail for transcendental Neapolitan-style pizza in Dallas, Zoli's seems certain to change the game for New York pizza and beyond. Ahead of the opening, the restaurant has posted its menu, which includes three versions of New York-style pizza:

"We make our own ranch dressing. It's a jalapeño ranch, and it's so good," says owner Jay Jerrier.

Traditional. Flat, thin crust. More flexible than chain pizza but more substantial than Cane Rosso's soft crust, so it can hold more toppings. Sauce is crushed San Marzano tomatoes; mozzarella is shredded, not fresh. These pies are cooked at about 650 degrees for five to seven minutes, for a crispier-bottomed crust.

Grandma. Thicker than New York but thinner than Sicilian. Baked in a rectangular pan, the bottom is crisp while the top is soft and airy. Sauce is a sweet, chunky pomodoro-style with tomatoes that have been crushed by hand. Destined to become most beloved.

Sicilian. Baked in a square pan, the Sicilian is the thickest, almost like a focaccia. It involves a four-part cooking process. The dough is baked, smeared with tomato sauce and put aside until an order comes in. That's when it's popped back into the oven for a finishing bake-off. The Grandma and the Sicilian use the same dough but undergo different proofing and stretching processes to achieve different results.

Appetizers run $5 to $8 and include fried dough strips served with marinara; zucchini fries served with marinara and jalapeño ranch; fried artichoke hearts served with marinara and jalapeño ranch; and garlic knots, a dozen for $6.

Salads come in two sizes, priced from $5 to $10, and include Caesar, Caprese, Gorgonzola and the Cane Rosso-esque Mista, with romaine, Parmesan, red onion and grape tomatoes.

Sandwiches are called heroes, including the Northeast specialty known as the "parm." That's basically a sub sandwich with melted cheese, but it includes meatball parm, eggplant parm, and "chicky chicky parm parm" with chicken. Other sandwiches include sausage and peppers; fried chicken (called chicken Milanese); and the "Big Shirley," with prosciutto, ham, hot soppressata, provolone, Parmesan, chilies, onions and arugula. They're all $12.

Desserts include tiramisu and diavoletti, which are fried strips of dough drizzled with Nutella, sea salt caramel and powdered sugar.

One thing you will note in the above menu analysis is the word "ranch." Among pizza heathens, it's a popular if objectionable practice to eat pizza with ranch dressing as a dip.

Jerrier has wisely refused to serve ranch dressing at Cane Rosso, a rule that should be supported and applauded. But at Zoli's, he's folded faster than a slice of Neapolitan-style pizza.

"We make our own. It's a jalapeño ranch, and it's so good," Jerrier says. "I would never put it on pizza, but it's really good for something like zucchini sticks. It's for all our customers who’ve begged for ranch. This is where to get it."

Zoli's NY Pizza Tavern crust has nice rise.

Zoli's NY Pizza Tavern

Zoli's NY Pizza Tavern crust has nice rise.

unspecified

All You Can Eat News

Eki Sushi will bring buzzy sushi experience to southwest Dallas 'burb

A sushi restaurant with a little something extra is coming to Cedar Hill, on the southwest corner of Dallas: Called Eki Sushi, it'll open at 649 Uptown Blvd., where it will bring two buzzy options to a neighborhood eager to have them.

The restaurant is opening in a former Applebee’s, and is from a team that includes Meng Yang and Ben Zhu, who've operated other Asian restaurants in Texas. A spokesperson says they chose Cedar Hill, which is 18 miles southwest of downtown Dallas and just below Duncanville, because it's an up-and-coming area without many sushi restaurants so far.

They'll open in mid- to late-September.

Eki Sushi will offer:

a "revolving sushi" experience, in which pre-plated sushi is placed on a conveyor belt that circulates past tables, allowing diners to pluck them as they pass
"AYCE" all-you-can-eat sushi, in which diners pay a set price and order as much as they want

Both of these options have proven to be highly appealing to diners. The revolving sushi experience, for example, is a novelty with a sense of "fun" that takes it beyond the usual restaurant meal; entire chains are dedicated to the experience such as Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, which has numerous locations in the DFW area.

AYCE sushi places, also plentiful around DFW, are a lure for those seeking variety and instant gratification. And like a buffet, they allow diners unfamiliar with a cuisine to try a variety of dishes at a low-risk low price.

That said, Eki will follow the lead of many AYCE places that monitor your consumption to avoid waste; if you don't finish the food you order, you get charged regular price. There's also a 90-minute limit — no all-day gluttony — and it's priced differently depending on time of day: $20 at lunch, $30 at dinner, and $31 on weekends.

Eki has a massive menu with sashimi, sushi rolls, 25 specialty rolls from the prototypical Rainbow Roll with crab, cucumber, and avocado, draped with tuna and salmon, to the Sweetheart Roll with spicy tuna, cucumber, and avocado, wrapped in soy paper as well as seaweed and artfully fashioned into a heart-shaped roll.

In addition to sushi, the menu also offers Asian appetizers like edamame, spring rolls, egg rolls, tempura, and gyoza, plus wings and French fries, which are surely welcome in any restaurant, regardless of cuisine.

openings