Switching Cheese from Grande

[bodegahwy]

anywhere was anywhere near being the winner

They would have to do a lot better than “near being the winner” to justify $1 per pound to me. For me they would have to be hands down winner all the time… i.e. if I test three cheeses with 20 non-employee testers I would need to see 15 or more out of 20 pick it and repeat the test with the same results. Even if it came in first place but only half preferred it I would not pay that up-charge.

 

[Upst8]

I currently use Grande Whole Milk Mozzarella Cheese but, through my current vendor, the cost has been around $3.25/per pound.

I am looking around, both in house and at other vendors, at ways of saving costs across the board. One of the most significant changes I found was moving my business over to PFG which everything is significantly cheaper (about 5 to 8 percent across the board).

They of course have not carried Grande for some time, but he is swearing by their Bacio cheese product which is about .70 per pound cheaper than my Grande. There are of course other options to look at, such as a Leprino QLC, and other whole milk, or whole milk part skim, products.

My questions does anyone use Bacio, or even better has anyone switched between Bacio and or Grande, and what were your thoughts?

Shop around! Paid wwwaayy less for grande today! shop around

 

[URNUTS]

Understood but… 9 on an 18"? That seems very cheap.
All the Grande I used yesterday was diced.
DP is diced but I’ve seen both over the years.
The 9 was used yesterday (not on the pies) as a cost variable in comparing Grande to the other cheese which was a 50/40/10 in regards to price, portion, etc.
I have not yet tried, but I know that when I make another test pie- and it’s a true 18" and I start with my 9oz of Grande… I’m gonna be 1/2-3/4 through putting cheese on that pie and my 9oz will be done.
I also don’t want to create a system or procedure where cheese portioning is that critical- it just seems unrealistic.

 

[URNUTS]

OK… so in a nutshell, how much cheese are we all putting on an 18" $14 cheese pizza?
Because I think that 9oz on an 18" $14 cheese pizza- not caring how well it spreads- is not going to fool anybody.
I also got the whole they pay the farmers more, massage the cows, have their own vets, etc stuff.
I kinda like that stuff, but not if I have to pay for it because, like everything in life, ultimately SOMEBODY pays for everything.

 

[Harry_Toumazatos]

I currently use Grande Whole Milk Mozzarella Cheese but, through my current vendor, the cost has been around $3.25/per pound.

I am looking around, both in house and at other vendors, at ways of saving costs across the board. One of the most significant changes I found was moving my business over to PFG which everything is significantly cheaper (about 5 to 8 percent across the board).

They of course have not carried Grande for some time, but he is swearing by their Bacio cheese product which is about .70 per pound cheaper than my Grande. There are of course other options to look at, such as a Leprino QLC, and other whole milk, or whole milk part skim, products.

My questions does anyone use Bacio, or even better has anyone switched between Bacio and or Grande, and what were your thoughts?

I am purchasing a pizzeria which uses grande mozzarella cheese. Is there another comparable cheese to grande for me to switch to? I have been told that Sorrento is a lower and cheese but it’s been to my understanding that’s a rental and Pollio are used by the mass-market’s! Does anyone have an opinion on this?

 

[smiling_with_hope]

Put on the amount your taste buds tell you to get the pie in balance. I think asking others what is right is the wrong way to go. The taste buds don’t lie and there is no right or wrong. I can tell you we go very light on Grande and it has earned us recognition around the world. Walter

 

[URNUTS]

Understood, Walter.
That’s my plan.
I know we all have different ovens, crusts, price points, etc but, at the same time, there’s gonna be some triangulation… if some people say 9/10/11… ok; If some say 13/14/15…16/17. that’s some valuable info. Domino’s puts 16oz on a 16" cheese pie. That was a bit much, in my opinion, but they are (were) selling me the cheese so… that’s another story!

 

[Steve]

OK… so in a nutshell, how much cheese are we all putting on an 18" $14 cheese pizza?
Because I think that 9oz on an 18" $14 cheese pizza- not caring how well it spreads- is not going to fool anybody.
I also got the whole they pay the farmers more, massage the cows, have their own vets, etc stuff.
I kinda like that stuff, but not if I have to pay for it because, like everything in life, ultimately SOMEBODY pays for everything.

We put 16oz on a 20” for $14.99

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[smiling_with_hope]

Understood, Walter.
That’s my plan.
I know we all have different ovens, crusts, price points, etc but, at the same time, there’s gonna be some triangulation… if some people say 9/10/11… ok; If some say 13/14/15…16/17. that’s some valuable info. Domino’s puts 16oz on a 16" cheese pie. That was a bit much, in my opinion, but they are (were) selling me the cheese so… that’s another story!

I would try it all and see what you like. We make the pies I like and fortunately others like them that way too I grew up with 1st generation Italians as teachers and they emphasized minimum, great ingredients, flavorful crust, and balance of flavors. Being on the west coast now I find the pies that are considered “in balance” to be way out of balance to my tastes - way too much stuff on it, bland crust, too much added to the tomatoes.

 

[Steve]

Understood, Walter.
That’s my plan.
I know we all have different ovens, crusts, price points, etc but, at the same time, there’s gonna be some triangulation… if some people say 9/10/11… ok; If some say 13/14/15…16/17. that’s some valuable info. Domino’s puts 16oz on a 16" cheese pie. That was a bit much, in my opinion, but they are (were) selling me the cheese so… that’s another story!

16oz on a 16”? Holy cow. Yeah makes sense they were selling you the cheese! We’re all of their sizes equal in terms of 1oz per 1 inch?

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[riverside90]

Galbani just took over or bought sorrento. I know their packaging says galbani on it now and sorrento as well.

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[December]

They would have to do a lot better than “near being the winner” to justify $1 per pound to me. For me they would have to be hands down winner all the time… i.e. if I test three cheeses with 20 non-employee testers I would need to see 15 or more out of 20 pick it and repeat the test with the same results. Even if it came in first place but only half preferred it I would not pay that up-charge.

Yeah I tottaly agree I think they came in second place once(weve done a few tests) and the other times they were even across the board, its just Grande along with the reps toting ‘use less cheese’
Every item you sell there is always a company telling you that you can you use less of their product an example would be Lamb Weston french fries double the price bc of the image theyve conveyed

 

[paul7979]

Domino’s puts 16oz on a 16" cheese pie.

Haha! I’d doubt the Domino’s around me puts half that much on their pies.

 

[UncleNicksPizza]

First and foremost, thank you everyone for the feedback and opinions. We did a blind taste test with about 25 family / friends / regulars / employees. Of that about 70% preferred the less expensive Bacio over Grande, citing that it was a little silkier and creamier than the Grande, which reverse was cited by the other 30 as being more sharp and salty. So it really came down to personal taste. However nearly all of them all said that in reality the taste was close enough in relation that while they preferred one over the other, neither would make or break their decision to order. I think those results, along with the savings, marks a clear winner.

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[URNUTS]

Good info for me, as well.
We all liked all the cheeses.
As stated by others here- the difference better smack you in the face at that price.

 

[noreason]

I sat down with grande reps and turned the tables on them. I made them taste test the very product they were selling against mine and they all 3 got it wrong.

Cheese has been debated for ages here. What does that really tell us? I mean, nobody debates if a Ferrari is better or worse than a Chevy Cobalt. I’ve tested what I feel is every damn mozzarella that you can buy and I have yet to find anything that is hugely different, other than pricing. Why? Because it’s not suppose to be hugely different or else it isn’t mozzarella. It’s a blend or another cheese entirely.

Now I’m not saying that they are all the exact same. But like I’ve said before, paying huge differences per case isn’t going to net you huge differences in quality. It’s just perception. People have been pulling that same trick for ages. Selling 1000 designer jeans using the same denim Levi uses for instance. People eat it up.

 

[Steve]

I sat down with grande reps and turned the tables on them. I made them taste test the very product they were selling against mine and they all 3 got it wrong.

Cheese has been debated for ages here. What does that really tell us? I mean, nobody debates if a Ferrari is better or worse than a Chevy Cobalt. I’ve tested what I feel is every damn mozzarella that you can buy and I have yet to find anything that is hugely different, other than pricing. Why? Because it’s not suppose to be hugely different or else it isn’t mozzarella. It’s a blend or another cheese entirely.

Now I’m not saying that they are all the exact same. But like I’ve said before, paying huge differences per case isn’t going to net you huge differences in quality. It’s just perception. People have been pulling that same trick for ages. Selling 1000 designer jeans using the same denim Levi uses for instance. People eat it up.

Well played! I would say there are definitely some inferior Mozz’s out there. If it burns and your other cheeses don’t, then you found the inferior one. Biggest difference is probably going to be Skim milk to Whole Milk and that’s about it

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[Cdino]

I am purchasing a pizzeria which uses grande mozzarella cheese. Is there another comparable cheese to grande for me to switch to? I have been told that Sorrento is a lower and cheese but it’s been to my understanding that’s a rental and Pollio are used by the mass-market’s! Does anyone have an opinion on this?

If you are in New York you would be crazy to switch from grande… don’t listen to these people saying that it’s iver priced and bla bla bla… and bacio looks good (just as good as grande) but has no taste… if your looking to save money, and if you think about it how much is it really at the end of the week? $60 maybe $80-100 max depending on how busy you are… in my experience in NY places that are doing 30k a week are not using cheap cheese… duh! So don’t be fooled by all these people, I’ve had places in Yonkers, Brooklyn, Bronx, and upstate NY for years (my father since 1962) and I would NEVER stop using Grande!

 

[Steve]

Quite the way to introduce yourself to this forum

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[Steve]

If you are in New York you would be crazy to switch from grande… don’t listen to these people saying that it’s iver priced and bla bla bla… and bacio looks good (just as good as grande) but has no taste… if your looking to save money, and if you think about it how much is it really at the end of the week? $60 maybe $80-100 max depending on how busy you are… in my experience in NY places that are doing 30k a week are not using cheap cheese… duh! So don’t be fooled by all these people, I’ve had places in Yonkers, Brooklyn, Bronx, and upstate NY for years (my father since 1962) and I would NEVER stop using Grande!

Quite the way to introduce yourself to this forum

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