Ferro e Farinha returns!
To say that Rio is not known for good pizza is a bit like saying that Manchester is not known for sunny weather (sorry Mancunians!). Cariocas have a strange habit of eating their pizza with sachets of tomato ketchup or even (gasp) mustard – that’s how bad pizza in Rio is! One of the biggest complaints about Carioca pizzas is that they are topped with way too much (bad) cheese and not enough tomato sauce (perhaps that explains the ketchup?).
I used to wonder whether perhaps Cariocas just liked their pizza that way. Perhaps they didn’t want decent pizza? Well, just over a year ago, Sei Shiroma and his Ferro e Farinha team came along and disproved that little hypothesis. I wrote about Ferro e Farinha back in September 2013 when they were just getting going and the response I had to that post (it is still one of my all time most-read posts) made me realise that people in Rio (locals and expats alike) were crying out for a better quality pizza.
Great pizza takes time – the dough takes 3 days to rise and mature. Image from F&F’s Facebook page.
Time passed, pizzas were eaten, word spread and the number of F&F devotees grew and grew. In fact the lines of hungry pizza fans grew so long that it became common to wait 2 hours for one of Sei’s tasty creations and latecomers would often miss out (I speak from experience!). They say that having too much custom is a nice problem to have, but the F&F team felt unhappy that people were having to wait so long – despite their best efforts it became clear that something had to give.
Sei and his wife Daniela sat down, took a deep breath and decided to do something exciting and terrifying, something logical and crazy: they would open a restaurant. The trusty mobile pizza oven was put out to pasture and Sei and Daniela exchanged menus for real estate catalogues, swapped flour and yeast for sand and cement. To return to my opening theme of understatement, this was not an easy process.
I’ve only heard snippets of the full story, but let’s just say there were trials and tribulations aplenty. Luckily for us, the F&F team persevered and just 2 weeks ago they had their opening night. Mrs Eat Rio and I showed up full of excitement to see the glorious opening of our friend’s pizza place and I’m happy to report that we were not disappointed. As we walked into the cosy restaurant (just a minute from Catete metro station) we bumped into a few familiar faces and then took our seats at the counter.
Opening night: Sei doing what Sei does. Note the fancy new oven in the background and the lovely long wooden counter.
Old favourites were there on the menu – among others, the classic Domenico (tomato sauce, fior di latte, grano padano and fresh basil) and the pizza I had only ever heard about because they were always sold out when I arrived: Picnic Apimentado (ricotta, fior di latte, grana padano, Gorgonzola and spiced honey). We had a great night out and left fully satisfied, reassured that although the location and oven had changed, the quality of the F&F pizzas was as good as ever.
Picnic Apimentado – worth waiting for.
Ferro e Farinha is now the latest addition to my list of recommended restaurants in Rio, so next time you’re feeling hungry, go check them out. At the time of writing, they are open from Wednesday to Sunday for dinner only (19:00 – 23:30) and you can even bring your own wine (corkage fee R$12.50). Parabéns to Sei, Daniela and everyone else who has been involved in battling the obstacles and making this such a success. An inspiration to us all!
The Ferro e Farinha team on their first night. A success story built on perseverance, hard work and above all else, passion for great pizza!
Just a little note to anyone who might have noticed that Eat Rio posts have been a little thin on the ground recently. I too have been busy this year – mainly I’ve been working hard to build up my food tour business (currently listed number 16 on TripAdvisor’s list of Activities in Rio – whoop!), but I’m also working on a shiny new site to replace this old thing. Hopefully the new site will be making an appearance in the first half of next year.
Yes, it is indeed true: lately you post as often as a French civil servant works (your posting should follow his striking.pattern instead). Well since you are very busy this is understandable, although I still feel for the readers because as your posts dwindle so do my comments. Speaking of.which “Coluna do Gritty” could be quite a feature in an Eat Rio 2.0. I’d focus on politics and yoga hence the usual harmonious vibe I bring to table would only be intensified.
Regarding the pizza parlor: I bet you the owner had suicidal thoughts as he was refurbishing the place.
Ha ha, a dig at the French and some ever-so-humble self-promotion. There will always be a space for you here Gritty – I dread to think how the Eat Rio ratings would tumble without your reasoned and balanced musings ;)
As for the refurbishment process – I saw the look on his face when I mentioned it and from that I can tell you that it was not easy. All the more reason to admire the achievement!
I failed to mention this in my previous message: I love large counters. So it is nice to finally see a proper one featured in the post. Isn’t it funny that Brazilians, being such social creatures, are also extremely anti-counter. Weird.
Good point Gritty – I do miss a big wide bar/counter to lean up against. You’re right – it seems (here in Rio at least) that people prefer to set at tables and have a waiter bring the drinks.