Mortadella Head? Haven’t heard that term? Let’s explain. Growing up, it was a harmless way of calling someone a dummy, a dope, or meathead. Other times you used it when someone just had a big head. You know. A head that was shaped like a mortadella.
I’m not sure if it was an Italian thing, a Boston Italian thing, or if it was only used in our circles. Either way, the term “Mortadella Head” always made us laugh. That’s why it’s the perfect name for our restaurant.
Mortadella Head is something we wanted to do for a long time. We grew up eating in pizza and sub shops. You know, the ones we all remember… great food, grumpy old guy behind the counter, no atmosphere, and the sound of the refrigeration humming in the background.
We knew we could make it way better. We knew we could create a pizza and sub shop that nobody in the Greater Boston area had seen yet. We wanted to combine authentic Italian recipes with some of the things we loved eating when we were fat little kids. Things like big slices of pizza, meatballs, chicken parm and steak & cheese.
It would have personality. It would have an awesome menu, great music, and cool art on the walls.
Before we opened, we decided to do a little “R&D” so we took a few trips to Italy for inspiration.
We learned how to make pizza in Rome from the “Michelangelo of Pizza”, Gabriel Bonci. This guy was legit. Once we saw what real Roman pizza was all about we had to take it back to Boston.
We visited the guy who makes the best porchetta in Italy, Vito Bernabei, for a little porky inspiration. Once we tasted it we knew those flavors needed to be in our Pork & Rabe sub.
We ate lots of mortadella in Rome, way too many Arancini in Sicily and came home ready to innovate.
Mortadella Head is the best pizza and sub shop to hit the Boston area restaurant scene. We’re not telling you this is an authentic Italian concept. We’re telling you it’s better. Just try our Buffalo Chicken Roman Pizza and you’ll understand.
Get in here and eat!
