We the Pizza

Poignant stories and 65 knock-out recipes for award-winning pizza, wings, and more from Down North, the mission-driven Philadelphia pizzeria owned and operated exclusively by formerly incarcerated people.

Knock-out recipes for award-winning, Philadelphia-style pizzas, wings, shakes, and more, from Down North, the pizzeria owned and operated exclusively by formerly incarcerated people, featuring poignant stories from its employees.

Created and launched by Philly born-and-bred entrepreneur Muhammad Abdul-Hadi, the mission of Down North Pizza is to reduce recidivism rates in North Philly and serve up the most insanely delicious food while doing it.

We the Pizza tells the Down North story about how the restaurant fulfills its mission to educate and support the formerly incarcerated while serving dope food. A testament to survival and second chances, this cookbook offers recipes for the tender, crispy-edged, square-cut, sauce-on-top pies that are Down North’s signature dish; a whole chapter is devoted to vegetarian and vegan pizzas like No Better Love made with four cheeses and the arrabbiata-inspired Norf Sauce, while the meat and seafood pizza chapter features their most popular Roc the Mic pepperoni pie as well as the smoky berbere-brisket Tales of a Hustler and Say Yes, topped with jerk turkey sausage, roasted butternut squash, kale, ricotta, and lemon-honey drizzle.

The 65 recipes for pizzas along with classic and creative wings, fries, lemonades, and shakes are paired with cinematic photography of the pizzas in their natural setting and out in the wilds of Philadelphia, with lots of journalistic-style photography of the Down North crew making dough and slinging pies. At the same time, We the Pizza provides detailed historical information about incarceration in the United States along with empowering stories from Down North’s formerly incarcerated staff. And with exclusive pizza recipes from renowned chef-supporters like Marc Vetri and Marcus Samuelsson, We the Pizza celebrates ingeniously delicious pizza, as well as the power people have to rise above their circumstances—if simply given the chance.

“We the Pizza speaks to the power of Black communities to build successful businesses for the next generation. Through his trailblazing cookbook, Muhammad Abdul-Hadi brings an essential and valuable contribution to a troubled prison system. As he aims at reducing recidivism rates among the formerly incarcerated, this visionary leader serves up fantastic square pies with a side of African American history and advocacy. We the Pizza gives voice to the new wave of social entrepreneurs honoring the resilience and strength of our ancestors by embracing our foodways while pushing them forward.”—Tonti Tipton-Martin, James Beard Award–winning author of Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking and Juke Joints, Jazz Clubs, and Juice: Cocktails from Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks

“We The Pizza is a master class in flavor and purpose, blending culinary creativity with powerful storytelling to uplift the community. This is more than a collection of recipes; it’s a blueprint for using food as a force for good.”—Jon Gray, CEO and cofounder of Ghetto Gastro

“In a very crowded pizza book universe, just when it seemed there was nothing new to be said on the subject, I was thrilled and delighted to discover Muhammad Abdul-Hadi’s We the Pizza. This book reaffirms my hope that the realm of visionary, inventive, and staggeringly great pizzas will continue to expand with delicious ferment, while also proving that pizza is indeed the perfect vehicle for and metaphor of transformation, not only of ingredients but of people’s souls. This book is the story of that transformation.”—Peter Reinhart, author of Pizza Quest: My Never-Ending Search for the Perfect Pizza

“We the Pizza is a brilliant depiction of all things that inspire my career and love of food—a source of community, culture, and power. Muhammad has brilliantly captured all of the above and then some.”—Stephen Satterfield, award-winning food writer, founder of Whetstone media, and host of Netflix’s High on the Hog

Muhammad Abdul-Hadi is the founder and owner of Down North Pizza, the mission-driven restaurant in North Philadelphia that exclusively hires formerly incarcerated individuals. Down North Pizza is the culmination of Abdul-Hadi's thirteen-year vision and is a concept that has long been ingrained in him; through Down North and the Down North Foundation, he is able to impact to the economic realities of underserved communities through excellent food and uplifiting endeavors. Abdul-Hadi has won the James Beard Foundation's leadership award, and he and the Down North team have been featured in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Bon Appetit Magazine, the Today Show, Eater, First We Feast, and more.

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