Overview
Italian-born visual artist Michele Benigna first made headlines last year when he created a series of pizzas inspired by the signature dishes of Michelin-starred chefs. The Flour and Gold project saw him take the lead from the likes of Gordon Ramsay, Heston Blumenthal and Massimo Bottura to elevate the humble pizza into fine dining masterpieces, and then photograph them like art.
Now living in Wellington and working for Weta Digital, Michele is still exploring the concept of pizza, but as more of an evolution of a simple concept elevated to something else. "The lack of a high-quality product in Wellington pushed me to start thinking in offering something that simply was not around." he says.
After years of experimentation and completing a pizza course in Italy, the passionate pizzaiolo has moved from toppings like edible sand and butter poached lobster tail to what he calls "contemporary Neapolitan pizza." Michele follows some of the strict Neapolitan guidelines, including cooking at more than 450 degrees to obtain the puffy and airy crust, but implements a few modern processes to create dough that performs well when reheated — something which is important for his new delivery service.
Flour and Gold's pizzas are available in an extremely limited number each week, with delivery only available to the eastern and southeastern suburbs from Maupuia through Karaka Bay, Miramar, Kilbirnie and Lyall Bay.
There are six staple toppings to choose from, plus a rotating special each week. The 'Margherita Extra' is a combination of Italian tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella, dehydrated olive powder and basil emulsion; the 'Diavola' is topped with cacciatorino salami, fior di latte mozzarella, smoked scamorza cheese and chilli oil; while the dessert option comes with hazelnut spread, apricot jam, walnuts and lemon zest. The current weekly special includes burrata, Cantabrian sea anchovies and lemon zest.
To ensure the best possible pizza experience, Flour and Gold only accepts pre-booked orders with a minimum lead time of two days due to the 48-hour slow fermentation process.
For more information about Flour and Gold, visit flourandgold.com.