Who doesn’t like pizza? I mean, I guess there are probably a few of you out there, but really, what’s not to like about pizza?! I was a fussy eater as a child, like really really fussy – I refused to eat the vast majority of foods (sorry, parents!). But the one thing I could be guaranteed to eat was pizza. We went out for my birthday a couple of weeks ago to a local pizza restaurant. I’ve shared my own pizza recipes on the blog here and here in the past. I think it’s pretty safe to say I’m a big fan of pizza.
And I bet you think, like I did, that there’s no way that there can be anything innovative about pizza. Maybe trying some crazy new combinations of toppings or one of those sweet pizzas. But, as a Disney fan, I know that innovation is constant. Not that that has anything to do with pizza, I just like using words like innovation that remind me of Disney and pizza in the same context.
Allow me to introduce Bella&Brava who have just made themselves known to me – a company who are drawing away from the traditional concept of pizza and reinventing it with sustainability, health and skilled production in mind.
They’ve chosen Venice as their first location, and I don’t think they could have chosen anywhere better. In my eyes, there’s a gap in the market for a restaurant serving up high quality pizza to people who really care about what they’re eating in Venice. When we visited Venice last year, we were a bit surprised to find that it was difficult to find somewhere we really wanted to eat. Of course there were numerous places to choose from, but a lot seemed tourist-centred and were focusing on getting people in the door with whatever means they could. In contrast, Bella&Brava would have been the ideal place for us to stop in for a pizza.
There are three elements involved in the process at Bella&Brava that make it different to all the rest:
Ingredients
All of Bella&Brava’s ingredients and raw materials are hand-sourced from local Italian suppliers who manufacture or process high quality ingredients and have a similar vision of environmental and social responsibility.
We’ve recently been on a bit of a social responsibility push in my office, so this is something that’s big to me at the moment. We’ve invested in supporting a local bee keeper (I’m sure you’ll be seeing plenty about this on my social soon!) so any way that I can help social responsibility is good with me.
Production
Bella&Brava use a specific slow leavening process with the dough – this generally means that it is more easily digested by the body (and also tastes better too!). The baking temperature is lowered by 18C and the pizza is cooked in an electric oven rather than in a wood oven. According to Bella&Brava, this helps to preserve the nutritional properties of the ingredients.
I’m always fascinated by the process of creating food, as I love cooking, but especially baking and doughs. Hop over here to find out why if you don’t already know 😉
Sustainability
Over the past few years, this has become more and more important to me. I want to make more conscious decisions about where I choose to spend my money and why. I prefer to support smaller, local businesses who have made an effort to be sustainable and environmentally friendly. Bella&Brava do so by using only eco-friendly materials such as cups, napkins, pizza boxes and more which are all 100% biodegradable.
Every aspect of the business has been thought through to the smallest degree. Even the logo is symbolic of the architectural and cultural symbol of the city of Venice: the mosaic in the Octopus Sectile of the atrium of Ca d’Oro.
And before I go, let me just leave you with an idea of some of the pizzas you can try at Bella&Brava – my soup for lunch isn’t looking quite so appetizing now I’ve read these!
Marinara: tomato passata, oregano, garlic flavoured olive oil
Margherita: tomato passata, buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil
Vegetariana: tomato passata, aubergine, courgette, pepper
Capricciosa: tomato passata, artichokes, black olives, capers in oil, truffled mushrooms, soy tofu slices
Tonno e Cipolle: tomato passata, tuna slices, red onions, green olives, soy tofu slices
Venexiana: tomato passata, crab meat, rocket salad, lemon flavoured olive oil, green pepper
Sooo, when can I book another trip to Venice so I can try out this pizza? If you’re heading to Venice any time soon, let me know if you try it!
This is a collaborative post.