I was so excited to try my first Tony Gemignani creation, I arrived early. Rather than take the menu I was handed, I eagerly asked for “Whatever the chef is eating, or thinks is best right now, please.” Without pausing, my sweet server explained, “Okay, I know what that is, but we have not started making those yet. And just so you know…we will only make 73 today.”
That was a very new experience for me. I quickly realized that I was not upset, but actually more interested now. A greater focus on sourcing limited supplies and not rushing master craftsmanship, than trying to meet more demand at any moment, is rare. Are we talking about pizzas or business?? Yes, we are!
The rest of my day was planned around the time my server said was best to come back. Some signs and clues while you wait say it all, simply and perfectly. Here is theirs:
When I got back, the same server came over to pour a cold beer and seemed just as excited to see that night’s fresh creations as I was, no matter how long she had been there. As a business owner, that had a profound impact on me. No matter how good a product is, the people around it can add so much flavor. She was a full-blown evangelist for these pies. She invested time with this curious stranger to take a deep dive into their process and back story. So passionate from knowing what goes into each pie, SHE made me want to book my second meal for the next night, before I had the first. I giggled at myself thinking wow she just somehow made me believe the wait isn’t just worth it, but worth at least twice as much!
Ingredient 1: Everybody on the team genuinely cares about delivering an incomparable experience.
Given all my anticipation and time to wait, it was almost unfair to judge my pie as I watched it finally slide into this oven. Conditioned by a career of investing, I know what biases and expectations can do…
“The magic is how simple it is,” she smiled. “You know there are only a few ingredients and that 900 degree woodfired oven, that’s it.” That’s when this magic show got even better. The chef walks out, overhearing our conversation. (Another tasty life-hack I’ve learned while staying curious, is to sit close to the action! You can increase the surface area of luck.)
He grabs a scrap of paper and writes down the only five ingredients he uses to make this award-winning masterpiece. He hands it to me and smiles.
He does not need to say a word to its overwhelming message – just like many great businesses where a customer or investor could do it themselves just fine – my gosh, what a world-class experience to be with an expert guide.
Ingredient 2: You can give your secret formula away for free, because you’re so confident nobody can repeatedly make it as good.
Tony’s note hangs near my desk now as a beautiful reminder that deeply informed and handcrafted simplicity is the Holy Grail for any business recipe. There are no secrets because the magic is consistency. As luck would have it, our stock selection system helped us earn a 5-star rating from Morningstar, and is also made up of only five repeatable steps that we publish on our website for all to see. The best recipes in the world, in any business, can be expressed simply on one page, or a tiny note.
Those fresh tomatoes came all the way from Naples, Italy. That’s where Tony was the first American to win the Pizza World Cup Championship. He was the first Triple Crown winner at the International Pizza Championships in Leece, Italy. He has won dozens of best in the world titles. These are not honorary medals or lifetime achievement awards; these are hundreds and thousands of chefs intensely competing from countries all over the world.
There are plenty of talented chefs - every little detail mattered in separating good from great. Judges often grilled Tony on additional ingredients or sugar in the dough, incredulous about what made it different. “None” and “None” were always his answers. He focused on better technique. And always curious, he once noticed dough that sat in a wooden box before tossing had a little less moisture, making the bottom a little more crisp.
No matter how fresh the ingredients, hand crafting means a lot of work. To demonstrate the best pizza is not just a recipe, Tony is also a 13-time World Champion Pizza Acrobat. This award measures the ability to stretch and toss the dough. He holds multiple Guinness Book of World Records for his spinning, rolling and tossing dough. Tony did not stretch those boundaries to win any award or set a record. He originally just wanted to let customers enjoy watching the process and to demonstrate the quality of the dough and what it could withstand.
The same ingredients are available to every chef and investor - it’s what you do with them that counts.
Ingredient 3: The best recipes are made with curiosity and obsession.
Here was my pie, before it disappeared quickly. It was the best I’ve ever tasted, which is why I felt compelled to share my smile and what I’ve learned.
I spent the first half of my career on Wall Street, where I watched more and more artificial flavors added to a conveyor belt of new packaged products. The best investors in the world need NONE of them. It only takes a few organic ingredients, obsessively worked together by people who are on fire for their craft.
The best recipe I have found for a meal or investing is the same. Stay curious and research to find the best in the world at anything. Then, ignore all menus and just ask them what they are making and eating themselves.
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