Pizza Studio Tamaki heads to East Village

Pizza Studio Tamaki will open its first permanent U.S. location in the East Village on Tuesday, May 5. The Tokyo pizzeria is taking over 123 St. Marks Place. (ny.eater.com) The restaurant is led by pizzaiolo Tsubasa Tamaki, whose Tokyo shop built a following for what it calls Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza. The New York restaurant’s own site says it will use his proprietary flour blend imported from Japan. (pizzapst.com) Eater reported the East Village restaurant will have about 65 seats and open in the former Moody Tongue Pizza space. Reservations are already available through Seven Rooms, according to multiple opening reports. (ny.eater.com) (foodeist.com) The dough is a big part of the pitch. Hall PR’s repost of Eater’s report says the pies use a 30-hour fermented dough and bake in a wood-burning oven seasoned with Japanese cedar. (hallpr.com) This is not Tamaki’s first appearance in New York. Time Out and EV Grieve both reported that the team tested the market with a pop-up in February before committing to the permanent East Village opening. (timeout.com) (evgrieve.com) The New York Times included Pizza Studio Tamaki in its April 28 openings column, alongside other incoming concepts in Brooklyn and Manhattan. That places the debut inside a broader spring wave of restaurant openings across the city. (nytimes.com) (theinfatuation.com) The East Village opening also extends a longer exchange between Tokyo and New York pizza culture. The Infatuation said Pizza Studio Tamaki is widely credited with helping make Tokyo a serious pizza destination, while Eater framed the New York shop as the brand’s first U.S. foothold. (theinfatuation.com) (ny.eater.com) For New York diners, the immediate change is simple: a Tokyo import that was a short-run pop-up now has a permanent address, a reservation book, and an opening date. (foodeist.com) (pizzapst.com)