John Liguori's "Fired Up!' Takes You All the Way Back

John Liguori’s Fired Up! Takes You All The Way Back

Fired Up over Liguori’s Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria


Liguori's Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria, is at the center of Davie, and at the center of South Florida. Enter “5810 South University Drive, Davie Florida, 33328” on Mapquest, Google Maps or Yahoo Maps, or your vehicles GPS navigation system. You will find yourself at the Lakeside Super Target Center on the northeast corner of Stirling Road and University Drive. Head for the northeast corner of the mall to find the establishment, opened in August of 2008.
I arrived sometime after five pm on the last day of January. It was chilly, by South Florida standards, but I was warmed instantly by the modern, yet welcoming decor. Shaded floor to ceiling windows allowed the perfect amount of the late afternoon sun to mingle with the soft and subtle lighting arrangement of the restaurant.
The large installation is built in a modern eatery style, where an “open look” approach is used. The trend is based on the fact that clientele feel better knowing that only the pantry and dish room area are hidden from sight.
The restaurants interior decorator is to be congratulated for creating a lighting and paint scheme which communicate all of the separate areas of the establishment well.
FiredUp!’s foyer is a nook consisting of a north partition half wall to the left, topped with a teak shelf of vases and flowers. The barrier makes a nice detachment from the bar area and the 80 seat "floor" of the dining room area. By creating a corner, it handles nicely the overflow of customers with six tall chairs and three tables. This vestibule is lit well from above by two orange pendant lights.
The salon type bar seats nine tall chairs made comfortable by footrests. Topped with black granite, it blends well with the dark wood wine rack on the south wall to the right. This relaxed area is illuminated by soothing, soft, white lights. These fixtures are inserted flush into the one piece ceiling that follows the contour of the bar set on a large, square tile floor.
An open kitchen that features twin hearthstyle wood fired ovens with polished copper hoods over the arched openings is the center of activity. Opposite them is the kitchen bar "pick up" area. Lit by five majorelle blue and white drip glass shaded pendant lamps it too combines homey with modern. Unlike similarly themed restaurants in South Florida, Fired Up!'s ovens are not remote, but part of the experience. Not only are the pizza's cooked there, but some dishes calling for saute pans are finished in them as well.Opposite these are the gas stoves, ovens, refrigerators, and sinks where John and his talented kitchen staff prepare the food. A kitchen bar is beyond these, where the waitstaff finish off the garnishes before delivering them to the tables or bar. This is lined with stacks of "set-ups". Consisting of a simple white plate, napkin, fork and a black handled steakknife, the set-ups accompany most of the salads, appetizers, and entrees, including of course, the wood fired pizza.
An 80 seat dining room area consists of square tables, "deuces", that seat two, "four top" rectangular tables, along with round, circular "six top" tables that combine easily to seat parties of eight, ten and twelve.
This dining area is lit overhead by gold pendant lighting, with handsome cobalt blue sconce lamps mounted on the north wall. These send diamond shaped shadows upward onto the soft cream yellow paint, between chrome framed artwork picturing scenes of New York City. Signs of that cities' Subway system, set below the artwork, evoke memories of Liguori's life in the borough of Queens, where he spent his early life. The eye is then drawn up and into the fifteen foot high matte black ceiling. No cheap drop panels are used here. The ceilings black circular AC duct with ports is unobtrusive, as are the silent black colored Xavier style fans that help keep the rooms temperature comfortable. The vaulted ceiling with exposed braces blends perfectly with the overall style and ambience, which is cozy and homey, yet modern. Handsome, dark colored wood wainscoting completes the overall look. The band of wood is set table high to protect the walls from table dings, as well as to separate the blonde walls from the burnt orange wall base.
Burnt orange paint lines the west wall , reminding one of the sunset, well into the evening when the shades are lifted to let in the remaining daylight. The same eye catching color decorates the back, eastern wall.
Before he was a restaurant owner, John Liguori served the South Florida Community as a 20 year member of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department. A framed uniform hangs on the southwest corner wall. It is dark navy blue with yellow lettered sewn patches with silver and brass bars. It stirs memories of a life well lived in the service of others putting his life on the line. as citizens of our community know all too well,
A firewall separating the ovens from the handsome bar area sports two artifacts of clothing from two of Liguori's family members. New York Fire Department issued shirts that bear the emblem of the firehouse they belonged to, the first firehouse that responded to the tragic 9/11 Trade Center terrorist attack. John is only too happy to describe who they belonged to and what they represent. These are hanging in frames over an actual fire hose required for the ovens.
Commercial-free Classic Rock of the Sixties and Seventies, fits the restaurants motif, and is played at just the right volume. The music of the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Doors, Rolling Stones, The Kinks and Credence Clearwater Revival, mixed with Motown and California rock of Jefferson Airplane, Mamas and the Papas, and Janis Joplin were all heard mixed with the familiar sounds of a busy restaurant on a Saturday night.
As someone who spent 15 years of my life working in the restaurants from New York City, to the Caribbean, Maine to Florida, from dishwashing to cook, busboy, waiter, captain and Maitre D', I look at a restaurant from an insiders viewpoint. Ask any restaurant worker, and they will tell you the same thing. We notice things.
Justin and Taylor, the staff who meet, greet and seat the guests, were polite and welcoming.
Bus staff David and Joey were nonstop motion. Clearing and resetting the tables, delivering plates, glasses and silverware to the dishroom, in time bringing them out again, stocking and stacking. These two, like all good bus staff, are the oil that keep the machine running.
I noticed that Fired Up! serves its sodas, beer and white wine in chilled glasses, another telling sign of caring and quality.
Liguori's Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria has gone out of its way to provide its customers with the area's best waitstaff. Johnny Geeze, with his trademark ponytail and goatee, former owner of the restaurant that bore his name, holds court at Fired Up! as a headwaiter.
Local restaurant celebrity Stefano, known as Baldi to his loyal followers, formerly of the popular Runway 84, was seen attending to people requesting him on this evening, while imparting his extensive knowledge and experience to a server in training, who was "trailing" him.
My waiter, Cody, a tall waiter named Mark, as well as Johnny Geeze and Stefano, were all seen meeting, greeting, shaking hands, even embracing some people as they welcomed them as guests. As owner, John Liguori took time out as well to make everyone feel at home.
And then there is the food.
I took a seat at the southwest corner of the bar and observed the staff and patrons for three hours on this Saturday night. I began with a glass of a California Merlot from Bogle Vineyards (at this point in the story, all certified wine snobs snicker) an increasingly popular “value” wine. A safe choice, true, but telling. They got the house red choice right.
When visiting a restaurant for the first time, my philosophy has always been to try the basics, the foundations. It will reveal how the rest of the house is built. By all indications, Liguori’s Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria, is a house built to last, on firm foundations with a successful future.
I had the Eggplant Parmigiana served over Rigatoni. Simple. Perfect. Nothing else to say.
For dessert I had, what can only be called, Attack of the Giant Cannoli. Drizzled with chocolate sauce and chips, eating all of it was a test of will. Authentic. Also perfect.
By this time, it was about six thirty, and the place was full.
Six thirty.
PM.
Saturday Night. Full house. Down economy? Not if you offer people value and quality, in a bright cheerful environment with kind and caring staff.
Reservations are highly suggested.
I watched as people came and went. Some were in and out in no time at all. Some came like me, for the “duration”, in other words, until we were done. There were young couples, middle age couples, elderly couples. The restaurant lends itself to sitting as well as standing, as evidenced by a large party celebrating a birthday. I saw Meatballs, Rice balls, Wings, Salads, Focaccia, all being enjoyed along with various wines by the bottle and glass. For this night, it was Happy Times Are Here Again. Isn't that what a restaurant should be all about?
Families came with children, and without them. I watched as diners, told there would be a wait for a table to open in the dining room, enjoyed their dinners at the bar instead. Others sat at the tables in the foyer.The food, fresh and hot, came and went. People had a beer or glass of wine and appetizer while they waited, then left with entrée and dessert to go.
Another sign of quality was the amount of tables who gathered their unfinished dinners and desserts in to go containers. Just about every one. Which means that there is plenty of food, and good enough for lunch tomorrow as well.
Besides the Wood Oven Pizza (with the poetic "To Each His Own" toppings), Calzone, and classic Italian dishes and sandwiches, Signature items at Liguori’s Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria, are the Parmesan Roasted Chicken Wings, Italian House Salads and the Caprese Salad. Served family style, the plates and silverware are set before the guest, while the food comes in large bowls with serving tongs, draped in fresh baked Focaccia wedges.
Pasta? Of course. Penne, Ravioli, Linguine, Fettucine. Use your imagination and combine it with your memory of every great Italian restaurant you know. John and his staff can put it together for you.
Before I forget, the menu is available as take-out, individually, or for parties of up to 20.
A note about this impeccably clean restaurant. The silverware that came with my set up was spotlessly clean. Not even a water spot. Not surprisingly, the well lit, neon green walled and tiled restroom with the latest hands free dispensers was immaculate too. (It even had a corner flat paneled TV screen.)
Historians tell us that the first restaurants were peoples homes. John Liguori and his staff manage to remember that by their warm and welcoming manners. Their patrons respond by relaxing and behaving as if they were guests in a home. I lost count at the number of people who were greeted by the hardworking ex policeman and his staff with a wave and a smile.
Lastly, a story of a family I met at the bar while they waited for a table. I helped a nice lady named Sandi to sit next to me. She and her husband Stan, sons Mark and Jay, and very pretty daughters in law Lori and Marlo chatted freely and amiably with me. Having been there many times, they described and explained how the dishes come to the tables. When I asked what they recommended, Sandi said, "Everything". I am not making this up.
They even told me that Johnny Geeze had named a dish at Johnny’s former restaurant called Chicken Liguori, when his boss was a favorite patron.
Most restaurant reviews have stars. There is only one star at Liguoris Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria. The stars aren’t the local police, firemen, celebrities ( a bestselling author ) and professional sports stars (Fired Up! respects its guests anonymity for the sake of their families, and so will I ) I saw who frequent the restaurant.
The stars aren’t local restaurant superstars Johnny Geeze and Stefano, (ok, Baldi), and the owner himself, John Liguori. The stars are people like myself and Sandi, Stan, Mark, Lori, Jay and Marlo, who are treated like stars at Liguori’s Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizzeria. Based on what I witnessed that Saturday night, I give the restaurant, one star for each person served. Over the last six months, that makes a galaxy of thousands of stars.

Liguori’s Fired Up! Wood Oven Pizeria 954-434-2378