Sydney’s always been well looked after on the pizza front. The likes of Via Napoli, Pizza al Taglio and 170 Grammi keep the traditionalists happy, while newer-school, Aus-leaning players like Bella Brutta, Westwood and City Oltra gleefully chart their own carby course. In fact, I would say Sydney is one of the world’s most underrated pizza cities.

But there’s always been one conspicuously big, pepperoni-shaped hole in the scene: New York pizza. (And yes, I’m aware of Sal’s and Epic Pizza.) Why? Who knows. Those floppy Neapolitan pies have had us in their vice grip for too long, I say. Time for some pizzas with a bit of pliability, oomph and I’m-walkin’-’ere energy. The kind of pizzas that would send the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into a feeding frenzy.

Sal Senan, Amani Rachid and Huss Rachid thought it was time, too. And the trio (who together are behind Self Raised Bread Shoppe, Self Raised Snack Shoppe and My Mother’s Cousin) has just given us Slice Shoppe in Marrickville. Despite already owning one of the best pizzerias in the city – My Mother’s Cousin, which has long flirted with, but never fully committed to, the New York style – they went back to the drawing board for the latest Shoppe.

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“When we made My Mother’s Cousin pizza, we wanted it to be New York but it didn’t end up that way, it was like a hybrid between Italian and New York-style,” Amani Rachid tells Broadsheet. “After visiting New York this year and trying some of the best pizza there, we thought ‘This is what we want’.”

“We went to about 25 pizzerias … we pretty much turned into pizza,” says Senan. “It gave us an idea of what sort of product we want to achieve. After we got back we just went into the bat cave and we’ve just been working on doughs, recipes, cooking styles and techniques.

“What we’re doing now compares with the best we had in New York; with the product that we’re showcasing, we’d be up there with the big guys.”

That research trip was back in May, and the team has been full-throttle since. When the Barzaari space became available, they pounced.

The interiors are simple: a collection of comfortable tables and booths look like a mix between a sleek but homey Marrickville dining room and an idealised, rose-tinted memory of Pizza Huts gone by.

“We wanted it to feel really nostalgic and old-school, but we didn’t get any inspiration from anywhere to be honest,” says Amani. “In New York, the pizzas were great but the fit-outs were ordinary.”

Pizzas are all about classic flavours: pepperoni; sausage and peppers; salami and jalapenos; white sauce with caramelised onion; and mushroom. The inaugural line-up’s available whole or by the slice, and there’s a selection of square pies as well, including an “upside down grandma”: cheese on the bottom, sauce on the top. For fans of MMC’s chicken wings, don’t fret – those are on the way.

“We want the main focus to be the sauce and the dough, that’s what it’s really all about,” Senan says.

Slice Shoppe wants to be known as a family-friendly restaurant, where everyone feels included. Meaning it’s a no-booze zone. With no drinks apart from Arnold Palmers, a few Heaps Normals and some soft drinks, it’ll live or die off the quality of its pizza.

“We don’t want it to be a bar vibe, where everyone comes in and drinks and the pizza is secondary,” says Senan. “There’s heaps of places to drink in Marrickville, so if you’re drinking, come on by for a slice then keep going. But this is a pizzeria for families, that’s inclusive for everyone, and I hope people appreciate it.”

Slice Shoppe
65 Addison Road, Marrickville

Hours:
Wed to Sun 5pm–10pm

@mmcslice