A new, casual diner at Tanjong Katong’s Kinex shopping mall could easily be confused for a cafe, given its outstanding cake display. But look inside and find pizzaiolos flipping dough and igniting flames in a huge steel, wood-fired oven where temperatures soar up to 420C.
You’ve found Southeast Asia’s first outlet of 800 Degrees Woodfired Kitchen – the oven temperature in its native Fahrenheit – where halal-certified ingredients are used to make gourmet-style pizzas at fast-food prices.
First opened in Los Angeles, the chain is the brainchild of American chef Anthony Carron, who partnered up with three-time NBA champs Dwyane Wade and Udonis Haslem of the Miami Heat.
The thin-crust pizzas come in 10-inch or 14-inch sizes and are prepared in under three minutes. The dough uses flour imported from Naples, the birthplace of the Neapolitan pizza. Pick a classic red Margherita sauce as your pizza base, a green pesto Verde, or go Bianca with no sauce at all by opting for a generous sprinkle of Italian mozzarella cheese instead.
Meat lovers may want to opt for the Spicy Meatball pizza, which contains beef meatballs, ricotta, and jalapeno; or the Philly Cheesesteak, which is covered with sliced ribeye, provolone cheese, onion, and green pepper.
If you love a good chicken pizza, the Pesto Chicken contains pieces of roasted chicken, cherry tomatoes, ricotta, and mozzarella cheese, while the BBQ Chicken uses red onion, provolone cheese, sundried tomato, and cilantro with BBQ sauce.
Thinking of riding the meatless Monday train? The Tartufo is something we think you could get on board with. Layered with truffle mushroom base, parmesan cheese, and arugula, its creamy base coats the mouth nicely while the fresh arugula cancels out any heaviness.
Whichever you choose, the sizable amount of ingredients could weigh down on the thin pizzas and create a mess. Be sure to have a napkin in hand.
Don’t like any of the pizzas we highlighted? The joint allows guests to customize pizzas. Other toppings on offer include beef pepperoni, beef salami, beefsteak, beef meatballs and prawns, as well as fresh cherry tomatoes, jalapeno, green pepper and pineapples. You can even complete that slice with a whole slab of burrata cheese.
The pizzeria also takes pride in its roasted chicken, which is cooked over two days in vegetable stock and marinated in a blend of herbs and spices. A quarter of a whole chicken costs S$12 followed by S$36 for the whole chicken, which weighs just over a kilogram. Its soft succulent meat tears easily and can be eaten with the restaurant’s wide range of sauces including homemade ranch, truffle ranch, and even Peruvian green for cilantro fans.
The menu also contains sides such as Mac & Cheese, mashed potato, butter corn, and garlic butter rice at S$6 per servings.
FIND IT
800° Woodfired Kitchen
Kinex Mall #01-52/53, 11 Tanjong Katong Road
11am-9pm, Monday to Friday; 11am-9:30pm, Saturday and Sunday
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