September 2023 will be an unforgettable month for Rio de Janeiro Matheus Ramos a 33-year-old entrepreneur who, in 2019, dropped everything to open alongside his girlfriend, Bruna Pires The QT Pizza Bar in the Gardens, in São Paulo .
Unforgettable because your restaurant won the 51st position in the 50 Top Pizza World, an Italian award that ranks the best artisanal pizzerias in the worldbeing the best placed among the three Brazilian women in the relationship.
Furthermore, days later Matheus came out on top in the first edition of the ranking The Best Pizza, placing him in 67th place among the 100 best pizza makers in the world.
For those who started cooking by chance, after burning a few microwave lasagnas and running out of dinner is quite an achievement, right? Matheus is an advertiser by training, but he had a successful career in the financial market before deciding to start his own business.
When he moved to São Paulo, the Brazilian city that consumes the most roundaboutshe combined the fact that he wanted to open his own business with the lack of a more “hip” pizzeria, with a bar feel.
This is how the QT Pizza Bar project was born, which got its name as a play on the famous Italian expression “Mangia che te fa bene” (eat it’s good for you), a Brazilian way of saying “che te” = “QT”.
QT Pizza Bar is decorated with industrial details, neons, graffiti and objects that refer to the universe of pizza, and offers the delicacy in a single size, made in the Neapolitan style, with natural fermentation dough – they mature for around 48 hours –, elastic, high at the edges and thin in the center.
The fixed menu has fifteen toppings, with a highlight being the Carbonara (R$60), covered in fior di latte mozzarella, parmesan cheese, soft-yolk egg and guanciale; the Melado (R$60) with Fior di latte, parmesan, goat cheese and truffled honey; and Rucola (R$65) with arugula pesto, roasted tomatoes, goat cheese and wild arugula. To wash them down, they offer six options of in-house flavored oils, such as versions with orange zest and garlic and dried herbs.
To accompany the rounds, Matheus’ desire for a house with good rounds accompanied by good drinks was successfully fulfilled. The large bar right at the entrance of the house sets the tone for the signature cocktail menu under the bartender’s command. Daniel dos Anjos. Expect drinks like the Affumicato (R$39), a combination of Bourbon, Campari and red vermouth smoked in oak smoke, or the most refreshing, the Gave Match (R$39) with gin infused with mint, citrus reduction, tangerine and lemon.
Matheus says that the main challenge in undertaking this area in SP is the competition, not only from other pizzerias, but because it is a city so rich in gastronomy, with great options in practically any type of cuisine: Japanese, French, Korean, Italian… .but, let’s face it, with an average of 200 pizzas sold daily, and on weekends up to 350 pizzas, this doesn’t seem like a big problem.
When asked about the weight of being considered the best pizza maker in Brazil, he is modest: “Honestly? At the same time that I lie in bed and think it’s all very crazy and that the responsibility is great, when I’m working I can’t feel that weight. I know that it was by doing my best that I reached this level, so it will be by doing my best that I will both satisfy customers and reach higher heights!”
And what would these even higher flights be? He still doesn’t open the game, but he guarantees that there will be good news soon!
QT Pizza Bar: Al. Ministro Rocha Azevedo, 1096, Cerqueira César – São Paulo / Tel.: (11) 3064-9220 and (11) 96367-4656 / Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday, from 6pm to 11pm, and Saturday and Sunday, from 5pm to 11pm. Reservations https://bit.ly/QTReservas
Source: CNN Brasil
Johanna Foster is an expert opinion writer with over 7 years of experience. She has a reputation for delivering insightful and thought-provoking articles on a variety of subjects. Her work can be found on some of the top online news websites, and she is currently lending her voice to the world stock market.
