For us, a pizza isn’t just dough and cheese thrown together in an oven. It’s an assembly of gestures, of waiting, of produce chosen one by one. It’s a method we’ve championed since day one, at Rue de la Loi 40 in La Louvière, because we believe a true Italian pizza deserves better than haste.

We’re taking you into the kitchen. Not to show off — but to share what we do, how, and why. Because once you understand what lies behind a vera pizza, you’ll never eat it the same way again.

The dough: 48 hours of resting, not one hour less

It all starts two days before. We knead the dough with flour, water, salt, and a small amount of yeast. Very little yeast indeed: that’s the secret. Less yeast, more time. The dough works on its own, slowly, in the cold.

Over 48 hours, it transforms. The ferments develop gently, the flavours build, the crumb structure settles in. No machine, no shortcut can imitate what time does.

What we categorically refuse: same-day dough, dough made a few hours prior, “express” dough. These doughs rise quickly, but remain heavy in the mouth and hard to digest. Not here.

Why does 48 hours change everything?

Three concrete reasons, noticeable from the very first bite:

  • Digestibility. A long maturation pre-digests part of the sugars and gluten. The result: you don’t feel heavy after a pizza here, even after a generous quattro formaggi.
  • The airy crumb. Air bubbles form naturally, giving those irregular alveoli that are the hallmark of a true Neapolitan dough — soft in the centre, crisp on the surface.
  • The crunch. A well-matured dough browns better in the wood-fired oven. The edge (the cornicione) puffs up, browns, becomes lightly caramelised. That contrast between the crunchy edge and the soft centre is the whole art of it.

It’s a time investment we fully embrace. A pizza that rests for 48 hours is a pizza we thought about three days in advance. But it’s also a pizza you won’t regret having eaten.

The wood-fired oven: the Italian signature

The other pillar of our method is the wood-fired oven. It sits proudly in our kitchen, heats to very high temperatures, and it’s what gives our pizzas their character.

Why wood rather than electric? For several reasons:

  • The intense heat sears the dough instantly. Cooking takes only a few minutes, which keeps the centre soft while perfectly cooking the surface.
  • The dry heat from the hearth dries just the right amount, without drying out.
  • The direct contact with the flame-scorched floor creates those characteristic little black spots under the pizza, that slightly smoky flavour no electric oven can reproduce.
  • The wood brings a subtle aromatic signature, almost imperceptible but very real.

Our pizzaiolo watches over every pizza constantly — turning it, moving it, bringing it closer to or further from the flames as needed. It’s bespoke treatment for each pizza.

To learn more about the cooking process, discover what the wood-fired oven changes for a pizza.

Our ingredients: why we choose them in Italy

Perfect dough and a top-notch oven aren’t enough. Without good produce on top, you can’t make a good pizza. So we made a simple choice: import our main ingredients directly from Italy.

Fior di latte mozzarella

We use fior di latte mozzarella, made from cow’s milk, melty, mild, slightly milky. It melts beautifully without releasing too much water, which is crucial to avoid a soggy pizza. It’s what dresses our Margherita, our Vegetariana, and the base of most of our creations.

San Marzano tomatoes

San Marzano tomatoes grow in the Naples region, on rich volcanic soils. They’re less acidic, sweeter, and more concentrated in flavour than standard industrial tomatoes. We use them for our sauce — simply crushed, with a touch of salt and a hint of olive oil. No need to do more when the raw ingredient is good.

Parmigiano Reggiano DOP

Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (Denominazione di Origine Protetta) is one of the most controlled cheeses in the world. Aged for a minimum of 12 months, often longer, it brings unmatched umami depth. We grate it fresh, never in advance, to preserve its aromas.

Extra virgin olive oil

Our extra virgin olive oil also comes from Italy. We use it in the dough, drizzled over the pizzas straight from the oven, and in our antipasti. A fruity, slightly peppery oil that adds flavour without overpowering.

Italian cured meats

All our Italian cured meats are carefully selected — hams, spicy salami, fine cured meats. The authentic kick of our Diavola, for example, comes from produce you won’t find in supermarkets.

To find these ingredients in the dishes on offer at the restaurant, browse our menu of pizzas and Italian specialities.

The exception: the 60×40 cm pizza

We apply this entire method to our 60×40 cm pizza too, our signature dish here in La Louvière. But on a larger scale, and with even greater care. The dough requires meticulous stretching to 60×40 cm, it’s cooked in rotation in the wood-fired oven, and several toppings can be combined on the same pizza (Margherita, Diavola, Quattro formaggi).

It’s our ultimate sharing dish — we discuss it in detail in our dedicated article: The 60×40 cm pizza: history, sharing and how to order it. To be ordered 24 to 48 hours in advance, because the dough doesn’t cheat with time.

Why this obsession with detail?

Because we believe a true Italian pizza is a small moment of simple happiness. And a moment of simple happiness shouldn’t be rushed.

We could have taken shortcuts. Bought ready-made dough, industrial mozzarella, tomatoes of unknown origin. Put it all in a gas oven. Perhaps no one would have noticed at first glance. But we would know. And above all, you would feel it — in the digestibility, in the taste, in the authenticity.

We’d rather work the way we would at home, the way nonna taught us. It takes longer, it’s more demanding, but it’s so much better. And that’s the difference we’ve championed from the start, in La Louvière, in Hainaut, at the heart of Belgium.

Come and taste it

The best way to understand our method isn’t to read about it — it’s to taste it. Come through the door at 40 Rue de la Loi in La Louvière, smell the aroma of the wood-fired oven, watch our pizzaiolo working the dough, and take a seat at the table.

We’re open 7 days a week except Tuesdays, lunch and dinner (12pm-2.30pm and 6pm-10.30pm). To book, call +32 64 28 32 73 or email mammamarianet@gmail.com. You can also check out our menu to plan your visit.

À table, comme à la maison!

Fancy trying our pizzas? Contact us to book a table. For an immediate booking, calling is best.