Seven Breakout Pizzeria Pros to keep an eye on in 2022
Tara Hattan (25)
Zasa’s Pizza & Wings — Tulsa, Oklahoma
@ zasaspizza
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
I will always keep improving my style, my knowledge and technique. But if I were to pick one thing that I need to focus the most on, it would be being an actual Pizzeria Owner. For the past nine years I have been on the front lines making pizza, and most times I forget how important it is to take a step back, SIT DOWN (weird) and focus on the logistics of making us grow more.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
There is always so many great things; it’s hard to say just one! One thing I realized this past year is that Pizza Expo is a ticket to unlimited amounts of knowledge and access to the BIGGEST support system in the Pizza Industry, and it only grows each year! Those connections established with people that were in my exact same shoes and had the same questions is what helps me the most. I can call those friends at any time of the day, and I know they’re going to walk me through the do’s and don’ts
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
I’m a firm believer in acting like the boss you would want to work for. The greatest advantage I have from working my way up is that I know exactly what it’s like to be in their shoes. The best way we keep people motivated would have to be simply giving back to them and showing how much you appreciate them. Whether it’s our treasure chest full of goodies and stickers for when they need a little boost, or when we profit, they profit! If it’s a much-needed raise, or those fresh new kicks they have been dreaming of. Growing staff into a pizza family motivates everyone at the end of the day. We all have the same goals and that’s to make pizza, make money and have fun!
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
With costs rising everywhere we finally had to cave and do a three percent increase on some items, and charge for things we typically could get away with not charging for (ex: ranch). The most important thing in pulling this off is definitely educating your staff to be able to talk about the “why’s?” if the question arises.
David Lee (42)
Pizza Jawn — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
@pizza_jawn
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
While we have a great social media following, I need to get better about changing with the times and doing more videos/reels and live stories that will allow us to interact with our customers more.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
During a seminar with Tony G, he talked about consistency over quantity and that has always stayed with me.
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
Treat them as equals and value their opinions and input.
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
On certain items we have had to increase prices as we would rather do that than cut quality, keeping our product consistent. We do special events and partner with other local business in the neighborhood that brings in added revenue.
Janet V. Duran (35)
550 Pizzeria — Laredo, Texas
@550pizzeria
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
I currently feel like I need to expand my dining area and finally get a beer and wine license. Oh and delivery! It’s hard to get delivery with insurance costs and also third-party companies and their rates just for a pizza to get delivered.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
Attending pizza Expo for the third time has taught me a lot! I was able to compete, something I never ever thought I could do! I was able to taste many kinds of pizzas, and then I started using some of those ingredients on mine.
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
My staff are my everything! I have meetings with them to talk about how they feel, what problems can we fix. I celebrate every birthday once a month, and I try to do free money Friday once a month!
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
We understand the value and the hard work that goes into making our product. Even though most of our ingredients have gone up in price, we anticipated it before we opened. We aspire to keep our product of the same or better quality no matter what. And with this mentality we try to keep prices fair for the customer, and yet that also allows us to compensate our employees for the work they do.
Andy Brown (32)
Andy’s Pizza — Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland
@andyspizza
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
We focus on quality every day. It’s a never-ending battle to make the best product we can. But I’ll also say that digital ordering has become an enormous nightmare in the industry. Third party tablets, integrators, hidden fees, slow delivery drivers, it can’t go on like this forever. Someone will come in and shake it up again. That can’t come soon enough!
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
Pizza Expo is invaluable to any growing pizzeria. We have our heads down all year long, working hard and doing our best to get better at what we do every day. The expo is a chance to pick your head up and take a look at what’s going on in the industry — innovations that help us scale, new equipment to make life easier for our team, and a chance to catch up with vendors we know and love to see what they have going on.
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
We start with fair compensation — minimum wage or a few dollars more just doesn’t cut it. It’s hard to work in a restaurant and by no means should it be considered “unskilled labor”. We also focus heavily on being proud of the work we do every day. Our entire team challenges each other to get better, with higher and higher standards set. If you do a job you are proud of, and are paid fairly for it, generally people are motivated to come in and do their best every day!
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
We are constantly pitting our vendors against one another — costs are rising like crazy and you need to keep people on their toes. At the end of day, it doesn’t matter how much “shopping around” you do, we increase our menu prices. Our customers have been very understanding with us, because even the big fast-food chains are raising prices.
Rob Cervoni (34)
Taglio — Mineola Long Island, New York
@tagliopizza
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
Nobody is perfect and I certainly am not perfect. I strive every day to better my business and myself. Currently I am focused on consistency. Consistency is crucial to running a food business. The customers want the same food they know and love every single visit. Unfortunately, when dealing with dough there are so many factors that can affect consistency. I specialize in Roman-style pizza, which is notoriously one of the more difficult doughs to manage due to its high hydration and long fermentation times (sometimes over 96 hours). So I have been laser focused on getting a consistent product so I can expand Taglio all over New York.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
The best part about the Pizza Expo in my experience is meeting pizza enthusiasts from all over the world. It truly brings some of the best pizzaiolos together in one room. I take full advantage of these situations by becoming a sponge and absorbing all pizza information possible. Whether you are a home baker or a multi-unit operator, Pizza Expo is the best opportunity to ask questions, listen and learn. Don’t be scared to ask your fellow pizzaiolo questions about techniques, recipes and business practices. I can’t overstate how valuable this information is and how it will help your business in the long run.
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
The biggest issue I’m seeing with most businesses is staffing issues. The shortage of skilled labor is most definitely real! Retaining existing staff and keeping them motivated is always a challenge. The one thing I truly believe and practice is communication. We are all human, things come up and work is work. The pizza industry isn’t difficult, but it is a repetitive grind. It’s waking up and doing the same thing over and over day in and out. Treat your staff with respect, treat them as if they are family. If they need some personal time let them have it. Always keep that line of communication open and hopefully that daily grind won’t feel so bad.
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
Prices keep going up, when will it stop? I don’t know! Nobody does! Unfortunately to combat inflation the simple answer is raise your prices. It is crucial to cost out every item on your menu and keep your food cost around 30 percent. Keep an eye on inventory and keep your distributors honest and competitive with their prices. The one thing you don’t want to do is switch to a lower quality, less expensive ingredient. Ingredients matter and the average customer is evolving and getting more and more educated on the quality of ingredients used in your pizza.
Ismaele Romano (46)
Via Focaccia — Inside at Ellis Island Casino — Las Vegas, Nevada
@ViaFocaccia
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
Given the moment in which we live and certain that managing a business is not easy, there are aspects to be fixed and straightened to introduce new products.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
That there is not only one way of seeing a product. If we take pizza as an example there is not only one way of making it or seeing it. Each of us sees it in our own way. The important thing is to respect the product. As an Italian, we often make these mistakes. We think that pizza is only one way, but it is not so. I had the opportunity to taste pizzas during Pizza Expo that I never would have imagined. Behind there is a huge work and respect for the product, for example Sicilian pizza or the Detroit pizza — pizza for which I have absolute respect and I like a lot.
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
I try to be as flexible as possible, while teaching them respect for work and what we produce every day. Remember we are artisans of taste, artists of flavor, sellers of happiness.
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
Of course, we are in a moment where everything has become very expensive, so I try to use genuine ingredients, simple recipes and, if possible, local products.
Andrew Gregory (43)
Post Alley Pizza — Seattle, Washington
@postalleypizza
What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level?
Most of our energy has been focused on improving our pizza to the detriment of all other aspects of the business. We need to be more consistent. Our small shop and corner of Seattle has been under construction since the day we took ownership four years ago. It has been confusing for everyone. But we’re making progress and that’s the fun part.
What is something you’ve learned at Pizza Expo that has helped guide your business?
We have yet to attend but look forward to next year. Our first visit was planned for the cancelled event in 2020
What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times?
We were forced to cross-train everyone on everything. That, in turn, has kept people excited and also made them more versatile and allows us to operate with a leaner staff. But we could still use some more help!
What are you doing in your pizzeria to combat inflation and rising costs?
Probably not enough. Our commitment to local food products and vendors has helped insulate our costs to some degree. We’ve explored offering breakfast sandwiches with some success. We did raise our prices. But we have also leaned into our “alley” location and focused on takeout. We installed a take-out window and reduced our dining room to only a few barstools.
