Take a Look Inside Downtown's Due Forni

Due Forni, the pizza-and-wine-focused Vegas import, is now open downtown in the historic Littlefield building. Their pizza was recently voted the best pizza in Vegas by Eater readers, and their double ovens allow them to execute pizza in both the Roman and Neapolitan styles.

Owner Alex Taylor is a graduate of UT's McCombs School of Business, and he's making a serious commitment to Austin. Eater spoke with him about how Due Forni fits into Austin's pizza scene, and photographer Patrick Michels takes you inside.

Taylor says what drew him back to Austin was the town's booming food culture. He says Austin seeks out the new and exciting, and calls the lines at Elizabeth Street Cafe "a tribute to them and to the town." He says the dining scene is not a zero sum game, and Due Forni will fit in with existing pizzerias like Bufalina and the Backspace by offering "a total experience" that incorporates wine and other Italian specialities. Due Forni's vibe is "hip but not too cool," and Taylor expects the restaurant to appeal to "hipsters and stroller-pushers alike."

Taylor is enthusiastic about being in such a historic space, but he calls the build-out process "brutal." In order to install the double ovens, the restaurant had to build an entirely new flooring structure beneath them. "I wasn't going to be the guy who dropped an oven through the floor of the Littlefield building," he says.

Due Forni will source locally, especially its produce, but they will continue to source their more traditional Italian ingredients from Italy. Taylor says he values prosciutto with "eight hundred years of tradition behind it instead of three." As for the future of the restaurant, Taylor has moved to Austin with his family, and says he's "dedicated to Texas." He definitely intends to continue expanding the concept, but he will do so in Austin and other parts of the state.

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