The pizza boom in Los Angeles seems to have no end. Over the past few years, pizza trends like Neapolitan, Detroit, Sicilian, and more have swept across the city, raising LA’s profile to one of the best pizza stops in the country.
One of the more recent trends in the city is Roman-style pizza, which has two variations. There’s tonda, which is a round, very thin, and crispy style pie. And then there’s al taglio, which translates to ‘by the cut’ and is served in square and rectangular slices that are cut by scissors.
Mushroom pizza from ROCA. Credit: Dylan + Jeni
Following in the footsteps of other great al taglio restaurants like Triple Beam in Silver Lake and Pizza alla Pala at Eataly, ROCA is the newest Roman joint and will start slinging its cuts of pizza on May 28 at The Americana at Brand shopping complex in Glendale.
The brainchild of Rick Rosenfield, the original co-founder of California Pizza Kitchen, ROCA is a portmanteau of RO (Roman) and CA (Californian) and aims to combine the long-loved Roman dough recipe with California’s farmers market toppings.
“I have always been a lover of pizza—whether it’s deep-dish in my hometown, crispy New York-style, and California’s creative interpretations—but when I tried al taglio for the first time in Rome a decade ago, I knew it was something I wanted to bring to the states and elevate with California’s fresh ingredients,” says Rosenfield. “We’re really proud of our product and have dedicated years to its development down to each individual source: the organic flour dough, the California tomatoes, the specialty cheeses.”
Prosciutto Pizza at ROCA. Credit: Dylan + Jeni
The executive chef in charge of these glorious pizza concoctions is Luigi Roditis, a California-raised cook whose mother is Roman. Roditis comes from the now-defunct Il Romanista, where he was doling out Roman-style pies to hungry crowds in El Segundo.
At ROCA, Roditis will be serving everything from squash blossom cuts with zucchini, mozzarella, and ricotta, to chicken pesto squares with basil pesto, bacon, and sun-dried tomatoes.
Salad Pizza at ROCA. Credit: Dylan + Jeni
The pop-up is actually a preview of two up-and-coming brick-and-mortar locations planned for fall that include a spot at Waterside in Marina del Rey.
If you want to check out the entire menu, head over to ROCA's website and make the drive to The Americana at Brand starting May 28 to grab a cut and be transported to the cobblestoned streets of Rome.