DeFazio's
Trends come and go, but pizza, specifically DeFazio’s Pizzeria in Troy, is here to stay.
DeFazio’s, in many ways, is a case study in how certain classic American ideals—ambition and a drive for excellence, tempered by empathy—can remain constant, if evolving, in the face of inevitable change.
“My grandparents opened A DeFazio Imports in 1951,” says Matt DeFazio, son of owner Rocco DeFazio, husband of Shana, father of baby Brady Anthony, tosser of dough, baker of savory pies, herder of cats and the general leading a third-wave artisanal Italian food revolution in Troy. “Back in the ’50s and up through the 1960s and early ’70s, there were more than 200 mom-and-pop shops selling traditional Italian, German and Polish foods in Troy. Now we’re the only one left.”
While most people think “pizza” when they hear DeFazio’s, and while it has become a national stop on any major pizza (or political) tour of the U.S. (a glance at the wall will find familiar faces, including Hilary Clinton, Joe Girardi, Jimmy Durante and Nelson Rockfeller), it started out, and Matt still considers its foundation to be, as a dispenser of authentic Italian cuisine.
“My grandfather was from Calabria, while my grandmother grew up outside of Naples. They realized when they arrived in Troy that there was a real desire for food from the old country,” he says. “They sold all of the traditional Italian staples, most of them made from scratch, and we carry on that tradition today. We sell homemade Italian sausage, four types of pasta, four different meatballs, eight different pasta sauces and a variety of gelato. Our most important imported item is Pecorino cheese. The Troy Firefighters call is ‘South Troy Gold.’” While they keep the foundation built by Anthony and Josephine, with every generation, a few more delicious layers have been added to their edible empire. Matt’s father, Rocco, came up with the idea of adding a pizzeria.
In 1989, Rocco leased the space next door to the import store. He wanted to create their version of Italian pizza, which turned into a Pergolesi-style opera buffa, involving a man named Mario who, believe it or not, came with the oven.
“This was way before wood-fired pizza was cool,” Matt recalls. “The closest wood-fired pizza was 70 miles away. The only way we could get a classic oven was by shipping it in parts from Modena. And it came with Mario!”
His father had to drive over to Boston to pick up the oven, shipped in six parts, and Mario, who was the only human the oven-maker trusted to put it together and show them how to use it.
“Mario spoke no English,” Matt explains. “My grandparents had to translate what he needed from my father to put it together. He put it together by hand, and when he was finished, he boarded a Greyhound to Boston, and from there went back to Italy,” Matt explains.
Matt was two years old when the pizzeria opened. All five of Rocco’s kids worked in the pizzeria, but Matt was the only one consistently captivated with the art of running the business.
“My dad would tell our customers that he had a 65-year long apprenticeship underneath my grandparents,” Matt says.
“We learned everything from my grandparents. My first job was in the sixth grade. I was allowed to cut the homemade pasta after my grandfather mixed it and put it through the pasta maker. Then I’d add cornmeal and put it in the container for customers. From there, I graduated to dish cleaning, and finally cooking.”
His formal training happened at Siena College, where he studied business management. While in school, he began envisioning how he could take the delicious foundation his father and grandparents built and turn it into a hospitality empire. He knew innovation and mobility was what the business needed.
The DeFazios have always managed to stay ahead of the curve, all while making trend-proof dishes that never taste like anything else people have tried here.
“We use my great-grandmother’s bread dough recipe for our pizza, so our crusts taste like a great Italian bread,” he says. They also have a range of offbeat flavors (BBQ Chicken, General Tso’s, Chicken Pineapple Fra Diavolo), along with Italian-American classics (Fresh Mozzarella, White Clam, Puttanesca) and a surprising openness to the kind of eatinglifestyle requests that seem to turn many a congenial restaurateur into a rage beast.
“My sister majored in biology and started studying nutrition,” Matt says. “We started discussing the impact of growth hormones used in dairy and meat production and the pesticides used on grains and produce, and I decided to cook as clean as possible.”
In 2007, he began using organic flour for his dough, and he utilizes as many local, sustainable products as possible, save the pecorino Romano and other stray culinary essentials because, let’s face it, #ItaliansDoItBetter. He works with several Troy producers, including Brown’s Brewery (he uses the Oatmeal Stout in the dough) and vegan deli Berben & Wolff's (he uses their seitan and vegan cheese on vegan pizza). Their seitan is “amazing,” Matt insists.
I know. I was shocked that an old-school Italian joint was cranking out vegan pizza, too, but hold onto your hat, because it gets even wilder. These guys are doing it with a smile. “Italian cuisine, especially southern Italian cuisine, is all about the produce,” Matt insists. “Offering vegan options and gluten-free options is easy. It’s part of our DNA. And I know veganism and gluten-free diets get a bad rap by some, but I’ve seen firsthand what an impact they can have.”
His younger brother, he explains, was diagnosed with alopecia (a disorder in which you lose all of your hair on your body, face, head, even eyelashes). When he went vegan, it came back.
“I get feedback from customers who have issues or who have kids with issues,” Matt says. “They love having an option that feels quote-unquote normal and still tastes great. I feel like we’re in business to serve all people, and it makes me proud that we can make a difference.”
The business volume speaks for itself. On an average week, 1,000 DeFazio pizzas get consumed, 20% of which are in-house in their 16-person dining room, 50% of which are pickup, and 30% of which are delivered. In addition to that, they do catering in-and out-of-house. Private parties have become a huge success for DeFazio’s. They sit parties right in the import store or in the backyard by their garden.
It’s a good business, even a great one, but Matt is just getting started on a new layer of that legacy. DeFazio’s and Berkshire Bank are working on a $2 million expansion and renovation that would create a space for a much bigger, much more ambitious restaurant, a 100-person banquet hall, gelateria and a cooking school space.
The DeFazios bought the former Vanilla Bean factory down the street (at 216 Fourth Street). They’d move the whole operation there, he says, adding that they will have to add two new pizza ovens.
“We’ll have them shipped from Italy again, and we’re hoping to time it so that construction is underway and there’s a big space in the roof or wall to make it easier,” he says. No word yet on whether Mario will be part of the shipment.
The move, Matt says, is a reflection not just of his ambitions but of the changing times and appetites.
“Troy has changed so much in these last five years,” he says.
“We now deliver multiple times a week to luxury apartments, and there are more apartments going up all the time. There’s also a real desire for authentic, high-quality, unique cuisine.”
He’s already perfected the recipes (all classic southern Italian, with plenty of options for every kind of eater), and his younger brother has been developing gelato recipes over the past year.
“Our good friends owned Gelateria Lisa and it closed unfortunately, so we bought all of their gelato equipment,” Matt says. “Most ice cream and gelato shops get premade bases, but we make our own. We use Battenkill cream and organic sugar, and add homemade flavors from there. It tastes richer but is healthier than ice cream. And we’re working on vegan recipes, too.”
What would Anthony and Josephine think of their grandson Matt serving vegan gelato from a rehabbed industrial factory, along with seitan-topped organic pizza and her mother’s classic Italian pies? We have a feeling they’d love it. Like lasagna, every layer is delicious, and they’re even better together than they are on their own.
DeFazio’s Pizzeria | @defaziospizzeria
Brown’s Brewery | @brownsbrewingco
Berben & Wolff's | @berben_and_wolffs
Battenkill Valley Creamery | @battenkillcreamery
