Dough is one of the most important factors when it comes to pizza — and according to Kainan Roman, who co-owns pizza pop-up Best Side Pies with Christopher Aguinaldo, it’s one of the business’s differentiating qualities.

“Our flour that we source for our dough is American made; it doesn’t come from Italy,” he says. “We use bread flour, so when you bite into our pizzas, it has a chewy texture like a good sourdough. You can taste a little bit of fermentation from the way we start the dough. We wanted our pizza to be a cross between a Neapolitan-style and a New York-style pizza.”

Best Side Pies started three months ago. You can currently find the pop-up at Residence Inn by Marriott Oahu Kapolei on Tuesdays and Thursdays (4-8 p.m.), and at Waianae farmers market on Saturdays (8 a.m.-noon).

“I’m originally from Waianae,” Roman says. “We were tossing ideas for business names back and forth, but one day, Topher said, ‘What about Best Side? Like West side, but Best Side.’

“This business was born out of a want to do something more for people in Hawaii — what we wanted to see on pizzas,” he adds. “As soon as we bought the oven, we started rolling and haven’t stopped since.”

The current menu features pizzas like cheese and basil ($16), pepperoni ($19), supreme ($20) and a rotating flavor of the week ($18-$20).

“The cheese and basil pizza is our version of a margherita,” Roman explains. “The basil is there to add a little bit of freshness and give it that Neapolitan type of flair. We use large pepperoni for our pepperoni pizza — it’s not as spicy as the traditional one. We make the sausage in-house for our supreme pizza, and each vegetable is maintained and utilized to their full potential.”

The pizza of the week is a rotating flavor. Previous renditions include carnitas — a twist with housemade refried beans, cheese, carnitas, salsa roja, pico de gallo and lime sour cream — and chicken Alfredo.

“Chicken Alfredo is not a traditional Alfredo with bechamel on the bottom,” Roman says. “We did a fonduta — milk, garlic and cheese that creates this naturally thick sauce — and confited the chicken in duck fat.”

In the coming months, the biz is looking to start its food truck, so stay updated via the business’s Instagram (@bestsidepies).

“If you think our dough is good now, wait another month or so,” Aguinaldo says. “It’s not even in its final form yet.”

Best Side Pies

Various locations
Call: 808-798-1877
Instagram: @bestsidepies
How to order: In person or over the phone
How to pay: Apple Pay, Google Pay, cash, credit cards and Android Pay accepted