Why Manila Foodies Can't Stop Talking About Cutie Pie's New York-Style Pizzas

Cutie Pie
2/F Building A, Karrivin Studios, Karrivin Plaza,

Chino Roces Avenue Extension, Makati City
Open Tuesdays 4-9 p.m. and Wednesdays to Saturdays 12 noon to 9 p.m.
Visit @cutiepie_pizza

(SPOT.ph) Stephan Duhesme didn’t envision Cutie Pie to be a sit-down place. He thought the business would mostly be takeout and deliveries, and that people would mostly stick around for the bar they opened in the same space, Joséphine. But the chef, already known for Metiz and Automat, quickly found that people preferred to hang out for the pizza.

“The pizza worked so well that we had to push back delivery,” he says. 

And so, he's going with what the people want. He wants to keep it informal, keep the place feeling fun and casual. It’s pizza, after all – a food for the working class.

Duhesme describes Cutie Pie’s pizzas as New York style, though one might not necessarily agree. Most people probably think of New York Style as bigger pies, often bought as individual slices. Duhesme says an Italian friend of his described the pie as being closer to Roman style, and though the chef has his own thoughts, he says he’s not prone to arguing with an Italian over pizza.

But he does say that there are spots in New York that are finding success with this form factor. And what he really likes about the New York style is that there aren’t really any rules.

“Italian cuisine has a lot of tradition, and that comes with a lot of rules,” he says. “With New York, it’s a lot more free.” 

And so, he serves New York style pizza as ten inch pies, which he thinks fits the Philippine market better. “Here, pizza is something that is shared. We’re building something that’s really community driven.” And with the toppings, he’s not really thinking of what’s traditional. They’re just putting on what they think would work well, putting together pies with pretty balanced flavors.

Dear Marga is their version of the margherita, with their pizza sauce, cheese, and a basil sauce that brings to mind pesto. “There’s nothing worse to me than black basil on top of pizza,” Duhesme says. And so, the basil sauce, which is bright green and absolutely bursting with the taste of fresh basil. 

Bon’Chovy is an anchovy pizza. Cutie Pie matches the briny fish with garlic confit and bagna cauda, a dip hailing from the northern regions of Italy, which also happens to be made with anchovies and garlic. A sprinkling of parmesan tops the dish off and adds another layer of umami. While it might seem like an assault on the senses, the pizza is surprisingly mellow. It has big umami notes, but dials back the fishiness a bit.

Those looking for something decadent will be served well by the Dirty Carb. It has guanciale, the cured pork jowl that serves as the fatty foundation of Pasta Carbonara. It has the rest of the ingredients of Carbonara as well: egg and pecorino romano, and then it tosses in sausage to boot. It’s a rich, really indulgent pie that will have people stumbling out of Karrivin feeling both dizzy and satisfied.

But anybody can do toppings. Really, what matters with pizza is the crust. Duhesme says that the dough is fermented for at least 48 hours, and by the time it gets into an oven, it could have been developing for up to 96 hours. The result of all that time is pretty remarkable: a dough with a distinct, hefty chew, a crisp bottom, and plenty of flavor development. There’s a lot to say about the various combinations of ingredients that Cutie Pie puts on top of their pizzas, but when it comes down to it, it is the foundation of the pies that really makes them worth seeking out. 

Fermentation is Duhesme’s domain, after all. Metiz made its name on creative uses of fermentation, and though Cutie Pie is a much more casual place, that same expertise is on show. Their chili oil, for example, has fermented tomato in it, giving it an extra funky umami kick to go along with the heat.

Though Cutie Pie has taken center stage in the space, it is worth exploring what the bar Joséphine has to offer. It’s got a menu of cocktails, beer from Brujo, the craft brewery run by Duhesme’s stepfather, the famed photographer Neal Oshima, and its own little set of barchow, including japadogs, marinated olives, and focaccia. The bar has a little window to the outer space, so that people can get drinks without having to compete with all the people looking for pizza.

And it turns out there are a lot of people looking to try this particular pizza. Cutie Pie fills up quickly, and one might end up waiting a while for a table. This wasn’t the intention, but they’re rolling with it. Everybody seems to be happy to wait for a good pizza, and Cutie Pie certainly has that.