Brigantessa brings Southern Italy to South Philly

SOUTH PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- South Philadelphia has a brand new restaurant on the dining scene and this one is like no other.

Chef/owner Joe Cicala is making moves to become the first certified Neapolitan Pizzeria in the city.

Cicala already has one restaurant in South Passyunk named Le Virtu, with a menu inspired by Italy's Abruzzo region.

Now on the other he's opened Brigantessa, with foods from all across Southern Italy.

With a specific focus on southern coastal cuisine with lots of fish, homemade pastas, and meats cured in-house.

Cicala went to Italy to learn how to cure his meats, and when it came time to open Brigantessa, he went back to train how to make an official Neapolitan style pizza pie.

The dough is made with double zero flour and stretched by hand.

"There's a certain method that we use. It's the slapping method," he explained.

The pie is topped with San Marzano tomatoes and fresh Mozzarella, then cooked in a traditional Naples brick wood fired oven.

Graduating from pizza school is just the first step.

Now Brigantessa needs to host Italian inspectors who will ensure the restaurant is using the exacting standards for making Neapolitan style pizza.