By Mike McDonald –
Mosaic tiles line the floor, bamboo counter tops stretch across the walls, while LED lights keep the area dim. Glass windows allow onlookers to peer in and watch the “chefs” perfect their craft as they pass by. But they are not cooking gourmet dishes. They are making pizza.
This pizza is anything but ordinary. The chefs decorate various Sicilian-sized pizzas with unusual
ingredients, such as roasted tree nuts, potatoes and eggplants.
These fresh ingredients are then assembled into delicious pizza options such as, The Nutty Tuscan, Potato Bacon Cheddar and Eggplant Roasted Red Pepper. It is no wonder why this place is called Crazy Dough’s Pizza.
Doug Ferriman, founder of Crazy Dough’s Pizza, smiled as he looked at his menu. “We wanted to create excitement for our customers when they walk in the door.”
Founded in 1999, Crazy Dough’s Pizza has served gourmet pizza throughout the Greater Boston Area. This small, family-owned franchise has now come to Newport. The shop is located at the corner of Thames Street and Howard Street.
The decision to expand to Newport was driven by Ferriman’s appreciation for the community.
“I’ve always really loved Newport and the people here,” he explained, “I wanted to bring innovation to pizza-by-the-slice here with a different look and a different feeling.”
Ferriman’s pizza inspiration is fueled by his desire to provide customers a whole new way to eat pizza. “You can walk in one day and get a Rueben slice or you can get a Mac n’ Cheese slice,” Ferriman explained. Customers can still get traditional slices, but the specialty slices are the staple.
Tremendous care goes into building each pizza. The dough is handcrafted and twice-raised over a 24- hour- period. The result is a light and airy “cellular- like” crust. Only 5-Star certified mozzarella is used, which is only found at 5 percent of all dairy farms in the United States. The wide variety ingredients are brought in from local and out-of-state farms. After assembly, the pizzas are fire grilled to perfection. These higher quality ingredients are more expensive, but Ferriman
stands by his slogan “We buy the Best, to sell the Best.”
