Encyclopizzeria 
Scott Toth, the founder of Lakeview’s Pizzeria Serio, opens Craft Pizza in Wicker Park on Tuesday, June 3. Craft will offer eleven artisan-style pizzas as well as a “build your own pie” option. All of Craft’s pizzas are made using a 12-hour fermented dough and imported Sogno Toscano tomatoes. The restaurant’s artisan-style pizza is similar in style to Neapolitan and New Haven pizza. Thinner than New York-style pizza, Craft’s pies are crackery and flaky on the bottom and doughy on the inside.
On Saturday Encyclopizzeria was invited to Craft Pizza’s pre-launch party for local food bloggers. Scott and his team prepared a variety of pizzas for us and took the time out to explain what to expect from Craft Pizza. Below are the names and descriptions of the pizzas Encyclopizzeria sampled at Craft:
The White City: Whole milk & fresh mozzarella, pecorino romano/grana padano, lots of fresh garlic, herbs, black pepper & extra virgin olive oil.
Devil in the White City: The white city pie plus hot capicollo, hot cherry peppers, pepperoncinis & red onions. Available with both white and red sauce.
White Truffle Pie: Whole milk & fresh mozzarella, pecorino romano/grana padano, truffle oil & sea salt. No sauce.
Bacon Bianca: Whole milk mozzarella, pecorino romano/grana padano, lots of fresh garlic, herbs, black pepper, extra virgin olive oil and Craft Pizza’s cured bacon. No sauce.
All eleven pizzas, including the “build your own pie,” are available as 14-inch or 18-inch pies. While Scott does not foresee offering a gluten-free pizza, those with dairy allergies will be happy to know that Craft Pizza does offer the choice of vegan diaya cheese for an additional dollar on the “build your own pie.”
Craft is BYOB and intends to focus primarily on dine-in and will offer take-out but no delivery. On the weekends, between 8:00 AM and 11:00 AM, Craft will offer fresh New York-style bagels, rotating pastries, and serve Sparrow Coffee, which is roasted in Chicago’s West Loop. From 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM on weekdays and 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM on weekends, Craft will offer pizza by the slice. While Scott said that they probably won’t have them in time for Tuesday’s opening, all of Craft’s to-go pizzas will come in a GreenBox–a pizza box that converts into four plates and a compact storage container. Making Craft Pizza the perfect choice for an afternoon picnic. I can’t help but think that Craft Pizza’s convenient GreenBox, slice option, size, and location will will heavily cater to commuters and neighborhood residents on the go.
Judging from the empty plates and the chatter about how delicious all of the pizza were, especially the “Devil in the White City”, I’d have to say we were all impressed with Craft Pizza. I don’t think there was one blogger who didn’t go up for seconds. I’m interested to see how Craft Pizza will continue to progress and am looking forward to going back to try their homemade bagels.
Craft Pizza
1252 N Damen
Chicago, IL 60602
www.craftpizzachicago.com
Hours
Monday Closed
Tuesday-Thursday 4:00 PM-10:00 PM
Friday 4:00 PM-11:00 PM
Saturday 8:00 AM-11:00 PM
Sunday 8:00 AM-9:00 PM
