On Wednesday night, dozens of pizzaiolos crowded into the kitchen of La Sorted's in Chinatown to prepare hundreds of meals for a newly formed food aid coalition: the LA Pizza Alliance.
More than 25 independent restaurants and more than 90 volunteer drivers came together to send 245 pizzas to everyone affected by the multiple deadly fires that destroyed or damaged more than 10,000 structures and burned more than 40,000 acres.
Thin-crust loaf pies, gigantic wheels of New York-style pizza, Detroit-style cheese-crusted rectangles, fluffy Sicilian slices: all styles, shapes and sizes went from the oven to the cardboard boxes to the delivery drivers. and into the hands of evacuees and first responders. and any other person in need who has called or placed an order online.
“Pizza is for people,” said La Sorted owner and co-organizer Tommy Brockert. “I think it is the most accessible and affordable food for the general public: small family, large family. It is something easy and has been part of everyone's family life for a long time. It's something you literally put on the table and share with each other, so of all foods, why not pizza to bring us together?
Participating chefs from Apollonia's, Pizzanista, Little Dynamite, Naughty Pie Nature, Triple Beam and more coordinated which deck oven shelves could be free for use and which pies could rotate; who gets what counter space; What are everyone's cooking times? Who needs space to dump dough? and who will get the giant pepperoni delivery.
North Hollywood's Ozzy's Apizza poured ranch directly onto chefs' and volunteers' pizzas and, from a distance, into their mouths upon request.
In the center of the restaurant, long tables normally used for dining were repurposed as work stations for volunteer assembly lines and storage for towers of cardboard pizza boxes.
The pizzas were distributed throughout the county to first responders, displaced people and volunteer workers. A steady stream of delivery drivers lined the front door, while three or four organizers huddled around their laptops in the corner, running the event's “command center.”
Ozzy's Apizza founder Chris Wallace, left, with Triple Beam Pizza executive chef Juan Robles cooking at the LA Pizza Alliance event.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
THE Pizza Alliance was formed in less than 48 hours. Brockert woke up Wednesday morning and, while scrolling through Instagram, noticed how many local pizzerias were offering pizza to the community. Why not unify your efforts?
The restaurant owner called David Turkell, a community organizer and the man behind a viral pizza meme account on Instagram, who quickly spread the word.
What started in 2019 as a Little Caesars parody account called LOL Caesars has since become Turkish pizza partyan online gathering place for the global pizza community and a platform for Turkell (a political organizer who spent time on Obama's presidential campaigns) to connect independent restaurants and fans who simply love his pies.
Turkell and Brockert, both raised in Los Angeles, wanted to help their city. The owner of La Sorted expected to have 10 participants in the pizzeria; They ended up with about two dozen, and more who want to participate in the future.
LA Pizza Alliance organizer David Turkell, left, with Bronwen Kinzler-Britton, co-owner of Naughty Pie Nature, in the dining room of La Sorted's in Chinatown.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
They posted a link to sign up to volunteer Wednesday afternoon and got nearly 100 drivers. Others called to volunteer, while some simply showed up unannounced and expressed their willingness to help.
“In these times, it's hard to see who's doing what, who's there and who's supporting,” Turkell said. “So this is a really good and touching message to show that there is a great community for everyone and that everyone is here to support each other.”
Since the fires started, La Sorted's has offered a “pay it forward” program, where a $25 online donation sends a pizza to someone in need. Last Saturday, during what turned out to be a rehearsal of this week's effort, Brockert and his chefs shipped 1,600 donated hot dogs and bologna sandwiches, but without coordinating drivers and pickup times, the small restaurant and its delivery orders. pizza were bottled up.
Food writer Karen Palmer revived her French bread pizza pop-up, Pain Pizza, for one night only: the LA Pizza Alliance event.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
For the LA Pizza Alliance event, they needed more organization: an always-updated Excel spreadsheet.
“It's super organized,” said Greg Barris, a partner at La Sorted. “It's almost like the army.”
It all started around 7 a.m., when Brockert arrived at the restaurant and began preparing meatball sandwiches and hot dogs; He, Barris, his staff and a team of volunteers made and delivered 2,000 of these. Around 4 p.m. the pizzaiolos began to arrive, and they cooked in shifts until approximately 11 p.m.
The collaboration allowed orders from several pizzerias at the same time. “It's really fun to see Prince Street come out with Triple Beam, or Apollonia's come out with La Sorted's,” Brockert said. “When else can this happen?”
Legendary local meat supplier RC Provisions teamed up with Armenian bakery Ill Mas to create a special basturma pizza. Phoenix Bakery and Levain donated cookies for deliveries and volunteers, while All About the Cinnamon contributed brownies and cinnamon buns. The Beverly Hills Cheese Store delivered fine charcuterie boards to feed the masses. The brands donated olive oil, flour, grated mozzarella, meatballs and beer. Former Ms. Chi Cafe chef Kelvin Young appeared on the front patio grilling his suis, or West African beef skewers.
Some pizzaiolos traveled from Portland, Oregon. Others came from San Francisco and San Diego. Every time the team from a new pizzeria entered the building, Turkell yelled: “WE HAVE [PIZZERIA] OF [LOCATION] IN THE HOUSE” to cheers in the dining room of La Sorted.
The pizza general manager, Egles Araujo Reis, carries a large stack of boxes to the dining room of La Sorted.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Although she currently lives in the Bay Area, Tess Geyer's family was born and raised in Los Angeles, so when she and her husband, Square Pie Guys co-founder Marc Schechter, heard about LA Pizza Alliance, they knew They had to get involved. That morning, they loaded their car with donations from Berkeley to transport them to Los Angeles, crisscrossing the state with essential items for evacuees, as well as ingredients to make pizza in the kitchen at La Sorted's.
They had hosted their own bar pie fundraiser in San Francisco on January 13 and brought with them some of those thin, crispy-edged bar pies. Tribute Pizza arrived from San Diego with a delivery of California burritos for participating chefs.
The camaraderie was unmistakable, the atmosphere like that of a party. According to Turkell, the chefs joined forces with a hunger not only to feed others but to prove something.
La Sorted owner Tommy Brockert moves sauce during the LA Pizza Alliance event at his Chinatown pizzeria.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“This is a byproduct of a culture that has been saying for centuries almost at this point: 'Los Angeles doesn't have good pizza,'” he said. “People say it's in the water. People say it's the sauce. And, frankly, it's not true.”
In addition to dispelling the belief that Los Angeles and California in general can't produce a good pie, and in addition to helping the city after the wildfires, these pizzerias started the LA Pizza Alliance for longevity. As independent restaurants They continue to close at an alarming rateA common refrain was that it is better to support each other.
The competition, Turkell said, is with the big chains, not each other. And these dozens of pizza makers have no interest in stopping their support of the city of Los Angeles or its culinary community.
“This is not the last time you see LA Pizza Alliance,” Brockert said, pressed against the wall of his own kitchen. “We are going to have many more meetings, because when our pizzas match, no one can stop us.”
