By Charlie Pogacar
Seasonality and local ingredients are driving forces behind Dan Richer’s Razza Pizza Artigianale. That’s reflected by the acclaimed pizzeria’s rotating menu—guests can enjoy a Spring Pie (mozzarella, roasted asparagus, pesto parmigiano reggiano) in May, or a Corn Pie (mozzarella, corn, caramelized onions, fermented chili sauce) during the summer.
“Our best-selling seasonal pizza, all year, is the Corn Pie,” Richer said on the latest episode of Peel: A PMQ Pizza Podcast. “If we try to serve that in January, it would not be good—it would not be delicious at all.”
But for Richer, honoring what’s fresh and local comes with a counterweight: the responsibility to give guests something they genuinely enjoy, look forward to and count on when they walk through the door.
Related: Unsexy Operations: Dan Richer’s Approach to Training Staff and Facility Management
“People like regularity and comfort,” Richer said. “If someone comes in, has this incredible dish, tells 50 friends about it, and comes back five days later wanting it again—if it’s not on the menu, they’re going to be really disappointed.”
That tension comes into focus with Razza’s Cozy Potato Pie, a winter staple that shows how Richer balances agricultural idealism with the geographic reality of operating a pizzeria in Jersey City, New Jersey. Hearing Richer break down the Cozy Potato Pie—which features fresh mozzarella, fingerling potatoes, raclette, leeks and black pepper—is like listening to Mozart break down a symphony.
“When there really is nothing else growing, we rely a lot on storage vegetables—potatoes, beets, carrots, onions,” Richer explained. But Richer is quick to point out that “potato” is never just potato. “There are hundreds of varieties. It’s not just russet potatoes. You have to decide what type of potato you’re using, and then how you’re going to prepare it. Are you slicing it paper-thin? Pre-cooking it or putting it on raw? Crumbling it? Dicing it?”
At Razza, the secret is confit. The potatoes are slowly cooked in fat, a deliberate choice that creates what Richer calls “an incredible texture and mouthfeel.”
Cheese selection follows a similar logic. Alongside fresh mozzarella, Richer uses raclette—an unconventional but intentional choice. “Raclette is one of the best melting cheeses on the planet,” he said, describing the Swiss tradition of heating the wheel until it oozes and caramelizes, then scraping it over potatoes. “It becomes this really rich, warm and comforting dish. It’s like a giant hug.”
While Razza is known for seasonality, Richer emphasizes that most of Razza’s menu is intentionally static. “Our menu is predominantly static because I value comfort and regularity,” he said. “Plus, we get better at it. The more we do the same thing, the better we get.”
But, in winter—when the days feel too cold and short—there’s the Cozy Potato Pie: An example of Richer’s balancing act.
Listen to the full podcast with Richer at one of the following links:
