Making Dough at MidiCi

The pizza stretching station is one of the first things you see when you walk into the new MidiCi, The Neapolitan Pizza Company, at the Coconut Point Mall in Estero.

Based out of Los Angeles, MidiCi is one of the newest concepts from the brains behind one of the most successful fro-yo franchises, Menchies.

Fort Myers residents Dina and John Wysseier fell in love with the restaurant's mission of bringing friends--and strangers--together. So they brought the restaurant to Southwest Florida, along with much enthusiasm.

The Wysseier's were inspired by the dining experiences they had while living in Europe, where food brought people together, even strangers. The have a board by the entrance (another on wall space by the bathrooms) intended to make it easier to meet fellow diners, or at least open their minds to the concept. 

Polaroid cameras are kept at the counter to document your dining experience. Take the photos with or leave them in a frame by the door.

The most notable signature of MidiCi restaurants is a live olive tree, the tree in Estero is in the center of the restaurant, Yes it is real.

The concept is fast/fine dining. You order at the counter, but it's not like any pizza counter you've likely seen. The line starts where the dough is stretched and tossed; the flour imported from Italy. Order one of the classics, a specialty pizza, or pick from the ingredients in the condiment station.

Gluten free diners will be glad to know MidiCi has it, GF crust...and it's GOOD. I sampled it along with a pesto pizza, a meat pizza, the double pepperoni and the devil's pizza. The crust snob in me was very happy; it was light, crisp where it was suppose to be.

The two pizza ovens weigh some 3 tons each, they were shipped from Italy and seasoned over several days. You can see the flames from almost any seat in the house. They are like pieces of art.

Other special equipment includes a fly wheel prosciutto cutter that cuts the meat in perfect ribbons. Aged for 18 months, the prosciutto is then used on beautiful cheese plates, in salads and on pizzas. The ingredients here are top quality.

For diners looking for something green, the salads are fresh, big, plentiful and numerous.

Be sure to save room for dessert, the signature dish being the Nutella calzone with fresh berries. You'll need a nap after this one. Gelato and sorbetto are good if you're looking for a lighter option.

The coffee bar has almost everything you could want; they even offer gourmet teas. The Italian cream sodas are to die for and the beer and wine selection is on point, better than most pizza joints for sure. But then again, you might expect this after stepping through the door and seeing the kind of attention to detail that goes into making MidiCi special.