Pizza ovens are bringing in the dough

Wood-fired, coal-fired, brick—specialty pizza ovens are no small investment, but operators are finding that the equipment gives rise to a new slice of customers.

Once Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, Mich., updated its cafeteria with a gas pizza oven, the hospital sold 12,442 more slices than the same month last year. Laura Fellows, executive chef and interim director of food and nutrition, staffs two people at the pizza station—but often adds a third line cook and an expediter to keep up with demand.

The station offers four pizza options a day:  cheese, veggie, meat and specialty, such as mac and cheese with barbecue sauce or white cheddar with Granny Smith apples and maple syrup.

Fellows says the customer-facing appliance has helped pizza sales gain traction across the hospital. “The station is a completely open kitchen, and if you’re standing at the service counter, you can see the pizza cooking and talk with my guys standing there making pizzas.” A window on the back of the pizza oven faces guests, who can watch as the pie gets fired.

The menu item has become an incentive for various departments, which reward their teams with full pies. Although Fellows does not offer the pizzas in her catering menu yet, she says demand is there.

This fall, Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., opened Montview Student Union with six new eateries. One of the union’s most popular concepts, Woodfire Pizza, slings Northeast-style pies from its wood-fired pizza oven. The reputation of the thin-crust pies has moved off campus, and community members started making the trip to Liberty just to buy the 18- to 20-inch pizzas, says Duane Davis, general manager for Sodexo at Liberty. Families purchase the pies, which sell for $3.19 per slice, for $13 to $18.

Despite fueling one of Liberty’s highest traffic concepts, the oven is generally low-maintenance, says Executive Chef Michael Lowe.

The oven retains heat from the previous use and doesn’t take long to heat up in the morning, he adds. That helps Woodfire Pizza reduce the time it takes to get running at the beginning of each day.

Paintbrush Assisted Living in Fresno, Calif., uses its outdoor pizza oven as the centerpiece for events that attract residents’ family and friends. Just 100 seniors reside at Paintbrush, but more than 250 people attended the oven’s unveiling, says Emery Bish, dining services director.

Outdoor pizza now is one of the most popular food stations for celebrations and helps to create an ambiance for outdoor events, which also include entertainment
like live music.