One of LA’s Best Bakeries Drops a Surprise Pizza Shop in the Center of LA

The team from East Hollywood bakery hangout Friends & Family is on the move, adding a new pizza restaurant to its repertoire. Friends & Family Pizza Co. is open as of yesterday, March 21, at the Original Farmers Market on Fairfax, serving up slices, salads, and more.

Friends & Family Pizza Co. is the work of chef and head baker and co-owner Roxana Jullapat and co-owner Daniel Mattern. The pair have made a name for themselves with their original daytime cafe in Thai Town, serving up what may be the most robust pastry case in all of Los Angeles alongside breakfast dishes, sandwiches, and takeaway items. Now the duo is adding a pizza spot to its arsenal, serving naturally-leavened sourdough pizza using grains milled by Grist & Toll out of Pasadena. Given the busy nature of the Original Farmers Market, particularly with tourists and spillover from the adjacent development the Grove, expect a tight menu that includes the usuals like pepperoni, cheese pizza, and a take on the divisive pineapple and ham pizza. Chef Tony Hernandez, previously a co-owner of deep dish specialist Dough Box in El Sereno, who has also worked at Roman-style spot Triple Beam, is on to oversee the day-to-day pizza-making.

While the team isn’t putting labels on its pizza style, the pies here resemble the wide, thin slices common along the East Coast, with a thin and crispy base and browned (but not overly blistered) crust. The simple opening menu, which includes a caesar and chopped salad, is below.

The new Friends & Family Pizza Co. joins a slew of other prominent pizza-makers in Los Angeles right now. Daniele Uditi keeps on growing his Pizzana brand across the city (most recently into Silver Lake, with Marina del Rey coming soon), while the former Bootleg Pizza has been reborn this month as Little Dynamite in Mar Vista. Phoenix favorite Chris Bianco keeps adding pizza to LA as well, while others like Prime Pizza and DTown Pizzeria continue to expand as well.

Neon signage for the walk-up space has been up for some time, but the first official day of service wasn’t until yesterday, Tuesday, March 21. Moving forward, find daily hours for lunch and dinner, running 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Thursday, with an earlier weekend start time Friday through Sunday of 10 a.m., and a 9 p.m. closing time on Friday and Saturday nights. Find Friends & Family Pizza Co. at 6333 W. 3rd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90036.