By Ellen Spitaleri
Ask owner Candy Yiu what sets The Turning Peel, located at 4546 SE Division St., apart from other pizza places, and she will enthuse eloquently about three things: the pizza, the ambience of the restaurant and the community.
As for what is special about the pizza, that would be the dough and the high-quality ingredients that go into making the savory pie. First of all, the dough is the basis of Neapolitan pizza, the specialty of The Turning Peel, and that means that the crust is especially pillowy soft, flavorful and baked quickly in a hot oven.
“The temperature in the oven is nearly 910 degrees, and it bakes for only 90 seconds; we can cook three at a time in peak season,” Yiu noted.
But the real factor that sets the crust apart is the fact that it begins with a sourdough starter, ferments for three days and is then rolled into balls and hand stretched into shape in order to push the air to the rim of the pizza. At The Turning Peel, Yiu is quick to point out, there is no machinery involved in shaping the dough; it is all done by hand and the dough is never rolled out flat.
Also, dough in most pizza places is made so that what is left over one night can be refrigerated and used the next day. But that does not hold true for sourdough pizza crust—it must all be used in one batch.
But Yiu was raised to never waste food, so she bakes the leftover dough, turns it into pizza bread and then gives it away free to customers. She estimates that she has given away 10,000 pizza breads over the two years that The Turning Peel has been open.
Yiu is proud not only of the unique crust, but also, she is adamant about using only the best and freshest ingredients for the all-important toppings.
For Yiu, the dough-making process is both “scientific and emotional.” She noted that the alchemy of The Turning Peel’s pizza did not come about overnight.
She tested about 1,000 pounds of flour, and, at first, did not know if others would like her pizza. “We started out selling pizzas at the People Co-op’s Farmers Market,” Yiu said, adding that the first batch of pizzas sold out, so the next week she doubled the dough, and then that sold out.
“We kept doubling,” she said, adding that she concluded that people appreciated pizza, made with simple ingredients.
Yiu noted that she learned so much from the others at the market who told her about organic produce; this has enabled her to sell vegetarian and vegan pizzas. Customer favorite pizzas include truffle mushroom and pepperoni jalapeño hot honey, while her favorite comes topped with truffle mushrooms and sausage with jalapenos.
Yiu said she loves to take advantage of seasonal produce to make special pizzas. Last summer she harvested grapes from the arbor that covers the outside of the patio, roasted them and used them for toppings. She also roasted quince that she picked from the tree outside the front of the restaurant.
Other popular menu items include seasonal soups, house-made tiramisu and what Yiu calls “crust dips.”
“We don’t want people to waste the crust, so we have sauces to dip the crust in, including marinara, honey and garlic and ricotta compote,” she said.
As for the ambience of the restaurant, Yiu has carefully curated every inch of the space, from the made-to-order wallpaper and decorative tiles to the light fixtures and chairs. It took her a whole month just to pick out the floral plates used to serve the pizzas, as they needed to be the perfect size to accommodate the round metal rack that the piping hot pizzas sit upon.
The Turning Peel is made up of two different spaces: the house is an art-filled, cozy area with tables and chairs, while the covered outdoor patio features a grape arbor, antique ice cream chairs, hurricane lamps and space heaters. Yiu said that she and her husband bought the house five years ago, and she was peripherally involved with a different restaurant that opened in that space. But then the pandemic happened and the restaurant closed. The space was empty until 2023, when Yiu decided to open The Turning Peel. Her husband chose the name of the restaurant, which refers to a pizza peel, a long, shovel-like spatula used to turn the pizzas in that super-hot oven to make sure they are cooked on all sides.
And finally, Yiu said that the community has been supportive, with many customers returning regularly. “The Turning Peel is so special; it is inclusive, affordable, accessible and even romantic,” she said, adding that “So many people come here to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries. We’ve had a baby shower, a marriage proposal and customers have gotten married here.”
The restaurant is also ADA-accessible and dog-and-child-friendly; there is even a box with free toys that sits near the main entrance.
Yiu added, “I am so happy to share with the community. People come back every year to celebrate; we share these memories together.”
The Turning Peel
4546 SE Division St.
theturningpeel.com
Open Wednesday-Monday; see website for hours
Candy Yiu, owner of The Turning Peel pizzeria, shows off a freshly cooked mushroom pizza that cooks in 90 seconds in a 910 degree oven. Photo by Ellen Spitaleri.
