AMERICANWAY

CUISINE NOW YOU KNOW: Associazione Vera Pizza Napoletana standards require genuine Neapolitan pizza dough to consist of type 0 or 00 wheat flour, natural Neapolitan yeast or brewer's yeast, salt and water. Shiroma's approach is beyond novel for the Cidade Maravilhosa: "What flavors and textures can I create to appeal to people's comfort level, but [also] arouse them intel- lectually?" he asks. Besides the classic mar- gherita, known as the Domenico, Shiroma cycles through nearly 20 recipes, ser ved on 28- centimeter paper plates and made w ith w ith impor ted Caputo 00 f lour and San Marzano tomatoes from Italy and or- ganic ingredients wherever else possible. Big hits include Picnic Apimentado (f ior di latte mozzarella, ricotta, grana padano, Gorgonzola and spicy honey) and Des Bois (thy me butter, caramelized onion, fior di latte mozzarella, Paris mushrooms, lemon and black pepper), which run those lucky enough to snag one about $10 for a personal pie. It 's become so popular, a particularly entrepreneurial street vendor strategically sets up shop alongside Shiroma, selling ice- cold beers, soda and water out of a Styrofoam cooler to guests while they wait. Shiroma's success has translated into something bigger, however. This fall, he is opening a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Rio's Catete neighborhood. "I come from a country where a white guy from Vermont is making among the best tra- ditional northern Thai cuisine, a Korean guy in Los Angeles introduced Korean/Mexican fusion and food trucks as we now know them, and a Jewish guy from New York is leading the way for Tokyo-style ramen," says Shiroma, speaking to the seemingly improbability of it all. "I never thought the best insert-nation- here food should be made by someone from that same nation. Why would I?" Asian-American in Rio. I should be patient." Then they tried it. Suddenly, Shiroma found himself moving 52 pizzas in 20 min- utes (with two-hour waits to eat) and having to turn away loads of people who didn't ar- rive early enough to snag a pie. Brazilians are now showing up with bottles of wine in tow, making a night of it. open ing times. Bra zi lia ns ca me a rou nd l a t e r, s o m e m o r e c o n f u s e d t h a n a n y - thing. "Some people in Rio simply see me a s a g uy f r om s ome A si a n c ou nt r y, de - spite the fact that I speak English," laughs Shiroma. "And they're surprised that I make pizza. One time, somebody actually asked me, 'like … Chinese pizza?' I'm likely the only MADE TO ORDER: Shiroma designed and then commissioned someone to make his $3,000 mobile pizza oven. 62 O C TO B E R 2 01 4 A A .CO M/A M E R I C A NWAY KEVIN RAUB, a São Paulo-based travel and entertainment journalist, is a regular contributor to American Way. His work has also appeared in Travel+Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, Robb Report, The New York Times T Magazine and Lonely Planet. Awarded Top Global Matchmaker Amber Kelleher-Andrews CEO w w w.kelleher-inter national.com +1.415.332.4111 Los Angeles | San Fr ancisco | Las Vegas | San Diego | Scottsdale Seattle | New York | Chicago | Dallas | Houston | Boston Atlanta | Washington DC | Denver | Miami | Stockholm | London single, successful, selective...simply too busy?

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