50 Most Influential People in Pizza for 2020
We’ve done a lot of research to create this list of the Top 50 most influential people in pizza. We began by asking our past guests of the show, and even surveying our audience. Then on to social media, and here’s what they all had to say. This is a list for 2020 not an all-time list.
Criteria for choosing who made this year’s list.
- Mentions on the podcast
- Mentions on social media
- Mentions from listeners of the podcast.
The top ten were the most mentioned with 11-50 being are in no particular order. Ok let’s get started.
#50 Frank Kabatas: East Village Pizza
Frank is a master of Instagram. He also has a knack for coming up with some viral types of pizza like the double stack pizza seen here.
Listen to Frank on the podcast.
#49 David Lee: Pizza Jawn
David has been fascinated with the art of dough making for over 10 years. After about 2 years of being a mobile Pizza Company Pizza, Jawn had finally opened a Brick and Mortar shop on Main Street in Manayunk Pa. Follow along and I guarantee it’ll make you hungry. 
Photo Credit: Pizza Jawn
#48 Dave Portnoy: Barstool Pizza Review
This one is going to upset some people but there is no denying the fact that Dave can move the needle with his pizza reviews. Love him or hate him he has some pull in the pizza community.
#47 Scott Wiener: Scott’s Pizza Tours
I don’t think there is a person I know with more knowledge of the history of pizza than Scott. Plus, Scott has given so much back to the community with his nonprofit Slice Out Hunger. He’s truly a great human.
Listen to Scott on the podcast.
#46 Rachel Cope: Empire Slice House
Rachel Cope is CEO and founder of 84 Hospitality Group, which currently operates seven unique restaurant & bar concepts in Oklahoma City.
#45 Brandon and Zane Hunt: Via 313
Via 313 owners (and brothers) Brandon and Zane Hunt didn’t originally intend to open a ‘Detroit-style’ pizza trailer in Austin. In fact, they never thought of the pizza they ate growing up as Detroit-style at all. “In Detroit, they just call it pizza,” Zane says. They’ve built quite an empire of restaurants over the past few years.
Check out Brandon and Zane on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: Via313
#44: Daniel Gutter: Pizza Gutt
Just check out Instagram and you’ll see. Also, check out Pizza Plus and Circles and Squares.
#43: Nicole Russel: Last Dragon Pizza
She first started making pies in 2012 for construction workers fixing her neighborhood after Hurricane Sandy. Now, she’s turned it into a profitable side hustle. Her Last Dragon Pizza nets her about $250 a week via Homemade — despite the fact that, like most cooks on the app, she doesn’t deliver. Hungry users trek from Queens and Manhattan to Russell’s home in the Rockaways to pick-up pizzas.
#42: Vincent Rotolo: Good Pie
Vincent Rotolo didn’t get started in pizza until later on in his career but he always loved pizza and had a passion for making really great pizza. Opening Good Pie in Las Vegas only a couple of years ago, he took the risk and started his venture in business ownership.
Check out Vincent on the podcast.
#41: Bruno Zacchini: Pizza Bruno
Pizza Bruno was opened as a Neapolitan style pizzeria. A style that for the most part has remained relatively underground in the Orlando area. Our pizzas are a simple dough, fermented at cold temperatures for up to 48 hours, topped with the best ingredients & cooked in 90 seconds at temperatures of up to 1000 degrees. Changing the perception that Florida has no good pizza.
Check Bruno out on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: Pizza Bruno
#40: Roberto Caporuscio: Keste
Roberto has become one of the most highly praised pizza chefs amongst his peers and in the media, critically acclaimed as “#1 Pizza in New York” by New York Magazine, “Best Pizza” in New York State by Food Network Magazine, and among the top 25 “Best Pizza Places in the US” by Food and Wine.
#39: Spencer Saylor: Wizard of Za
Spencer Saylor didn’t set out to cause a stir with his homemade Sicilian pies available only through Instagram. But word spread, and a Clintonville brick-and-mortar location is on the way.
#38: Sarah Minnick: Lovely’s Fifty Fifty
Portland’s status as a good pizza city was built on the twin pillars of Apizza Scholls and Ken’s Artisan Pizza, which both opened in 2006. But if you’re looking for why someone might, however improbably, call us America’s greatest pizza city, you should start on North Mississippi Avenue, home to gorgeous wood-fired pies topped with super seasonal veggies, wild mushrooms, and cheeses you had to Google the first time you saw them.
#37: Adam Elzer: Sauce Pizzeria
#36: Michael Fitzick: Bakeria1010
The concept for Bakeria 1010 was simple, yet different: Create a bakery/pizzeria focusing solely on sourcing the highest quality ingredients available using the ancient methods of baking. We naturally ferment our dough using a starter culture sourced from Naples, Italy. The long slow fermentation results in a light yet a crispy product. 
Photo Credit: Baker101
#35: Peyton Smith: Mission Pizza
Mission Pizza Napoletana honors the centuries-old tradition of pizza makers in the birthplace of pizza; Naples, Italy. Baked in our handmade Stefano Ferrara oven at 900+ degrees, the result is a beautiful pizza; soft and light, yet crisp, and topped with fresh, balanced ingredients. Mission Pizza Napoletana stands out by its embrace of both traditional and modern methods, an insistence on using the best ingredients we can source, and commitment to quality.
Check out Peyton on the podcast.
#34: Chris Decker: Metro Pizza
Chris has been slinging pies under the tutelage of the great John Arena for the last 21 years, and he shows no signs of slowing down. On the contrary. He is breaking away from the crowd and creating some of the most delicious and beautiful pies Sin City has seen to date.
Check out Chris on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: Chris Decker
#33: Shawn Randazzo: Detriot Style Pizza Co.
Taking over a pizzeria after teaming up with his mom in 1997 while learning how to run a business by trial and error. Shawn decided to take his business seriously. He started to read books about business as well as reach out to other entrepreneurs in the pizza industry who have been successful. Shawn has been doing “Detroit Style” for a while, not many would be doing it now if it wasn’t for Shawn bringing it into the light.
Check out Shawn on the podcast.
#32: Massimo Laveglia: L’industrie
L’industrie is a tiny, cash-only spot in Williamsburg that serves about 30 different pizzas available by the pie and slice. They range from a breakfast pie with bacon and egg to one with garlic confit, brie, and truffle oil, and we like most of the combinations, especially the ones with cured meats. 
Photo Credit: L’industrie
#31: Emmett Burke: Emmet’s
Emmett’s was opened by native Chicagoan Emmett Burke in the Fall of 2013. The idea sparked to one day open up a restaurant focusing on foods that he grew up with and missed. A pizza lover in every sense; Emmett Burke has re-envisioned what Chicago style pizza is. Using only the highest-end ingredients available and applying artisanal pizza-making practices~ Emmett’s is as much a Soho and Greenwich Village local’s hangout as it is a pizza institution.
#30: Justin Deleon: Appolonia’s Pizza
Apollonia’s Pizzeria opened in 2012 but is getting a second wind these days, buoyed by a square slice that owner Justin De Leon introduced to the menu last year. The airy, almost Foccacia-like base, light on the cheese and dabbed with a satisfying amount of bright, tangy tomato sauce, falls somewhere between the classic Detroit-style slice and the pan pizza found at Burt’s Place or Pequod’s in Chicago.
Check out Justin on the podcast
#29: Danny DiGiampietro: Angelo’s Pizzeria
In a business in which many pizza makers ferment their dough for only a day before topping it, DiGiampietro will let his sit for up to 13 days. The result: light, airy pies, whether the square “grandma” and upside-down pizzas, or the round New York style. Danny has said that “he does everything against what the experts say” but in the end, the lines our out the door and the pizza ratings are through the roof.
#28: Lee Hunzinger: Zolis Pizza
Lee lives pizza and it shows on his account. He has a passion for making the best pizza with the best ingredients and letting his creative side take over with his creations. He wasn’t always allowed to be as creative as he is now and in this interview we go all the way back to when he first started to love pizza. 
Photo Credit: Lee Hunzinger
#27: John Ceserano: King Umberto
After winning “Best Pizza” in the gluten-free category of the Caputo Cup at this year’s Pizza and Pasta Expo, John’s been getting a lot of exposure for his business. John was a name mentioned by many guests of the podcast.
Listen to John on the podcast.
#26: Dan Richer: Razza Pizza
Dan Richer of Razza Pizza is a self-proclaimed learner and student. He’s always looking at what can be done to create the best possible pizza they can. It’s all about looking at your ingredients and making sure that the ingredients are the stars. Let them stand out on their own and don’t try to complicate it.
#25: Frank Tuttolomundo: Mamma’s Too
Mama’s Too opened in December 2017 and quickly became known for its modern and innovative slices like the caramelized onion and mushroom, and the zucchini with Kalamata olives. Times critic Pete Wells said Mama’s Too’s pizza was some of the best in the city, and the pizzeria is part of a growing trend of roni cup pepperoni pizzas taking over the NYC pizza scene.
Listen to Frank on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: Mamas Too
#24: Brian Spangler: Apizza Scholls
Brian Spangler is Portland’s pizza king. His secret’s in the dough — crackly on the outside, airy crumb inside. Add to this a perfect sauce-to-cheese ratio and a char that is deep and rich but never burnt and you have achieved the perfect pie. Now join the locals in the eternal debate: whether to order the Apizza Amore with capicola (cured pork shoulder) or the Sausage & Mama.
#23: Emanuel Reed, Derrick Moore, Clinton Gray: Slim and Husky’s Pizza
Nashville-based Slim & Husky’s Pizza Beeria serves artisan pizzas in “underserved communities and more,” and features menu items inspired by hip-hop and R&B. Take “Got 5 On It” for example, featuring classic red sauce, the house cheese blend, and fresh mozzarella; or “Cee No Green” with classic red sauce, the house cheese blend, ground beef, pepperoni, hickory-smoked bacon, Canadian bacon, and Italian sausage.
#22: Stephen Lanzalotta: Slab Portland
Sicilian street food is the name of the game at this Portland, Maine spot. Owner-slash-baker Stephen Lanzalotta’s “hand slab” pizza — topped with tomato, mozzarella, and provolone — is the specialty, and no matter if you get the half or full slab, each pie is built around an airy, crispy sheet of dough. Make sure to try some non-pizza specialties, like the Italian jerk chicken or meatball sandwich.
#21: Mike Hauke: Tony Boloney’s
An Atlantic City original, we decided our dreams were too big for AC alone, so we’ve brought our original flavors to Hoboken, Jersey City, Long Branch, mobile with our Food Truck & more… 
Photo Credit: Tony Boloney’s
#20: Michael Ayoub: Fornino
Michael is a Brooklyn native and chef for over 45 years. Michael, known for such renowned restaurants as Skaffles and Cucina, was destined to bring his wood-fired pizza concept to Brooklyn. Taken from his mother’s maiden name, Fornino or Little Oven, expresses Michael’s true calling, combining his love of pizza with his decades of culinary experience.
Listen to Michael on the podcast.
#19: Fred Morgan: Fired Pie
Fred Morgan is the Co-Founder of FiredPie in Arizona. With 19 locations open in only 4 years the growth and speed to which they move is pretty impressive. Fred has been on the show before and joined us live to go more in depth as to how they are growing so fast.
Listen to Fred on the podcast.
#18: Que Wimberly: The Missing Brick
The Missing Brick is everything pizzas been missing. Specializing in creating urban dishes on pizzas through collaboration with other successful brick and mortar restaurants.
#17: Nicole Bean: Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana
In 2018, Nicole was awarded the rising star award in the International Pizza Expo Caputo Cup. Nicole plans to continue learning and perfecting her craft in pizza and bread making with anticipation of additional locations and restaurant concepts.
Listen to Nicole on the podcast.
#16: Audrey Kelly: Audrey Janes Pizza Garage
After falling in love with pizza during a journalism internship in Italy, Audrey returned to San Francisco on a quest to learn the craft. In San Francisco, she began to learn from and work under master pizzaiolo Tony Gemignani his at restaurant in North Beach. After working with Tony for a few years, she helped open two pizzerias in New York City before returning to her hometown of Boulder, CO. Her search for the perfect space for her own pizza place finally became a reality when she opened Audrey Jane’s Pizza Garage in Fall of 2015.
Listen to Audrey on the podcast.
#15: Peter Reinhart: Pizza Quest
Pizza Quest is a site dedicated to the exploration of artisanship in all forms, wherever we find it, but especially through the literal and metaphorical image of pizza. As we share our own quest for the perfect pizza we invite all of you to join us and share your journeys too. Pete’s book
#14: Paulie G: Paulie G’s
Paulie started out by building a pizza oven in his back yard eventually inviting friends and family over to try out his creations. After contacting some local bloggers and pizza friends he started to grow a following. He decided (after a little convincing) to open his first place in March of 2009. He actually knew nothing about the restaurant business but was confident that he had a great pie with great combos.
Listen to Paulie on the podcast
#13: Nancy Silverton: Mozza
Nancy Silverton is the co-owner of Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles and Newport Beach as well as Osteria Mozza, Mozza2Go and chi SPACCA in Los Angeles. Silverton also founded the world-renowned La Brea Bakery as well as Campanile Restaurant, an institution that Angelenos cherished for decades. Silverton has worked with some of the nation’s most notable and influential chefs including Jonathan Waxman at Michael’s Restaurant and Wolfgang Puck at Spago. She has served as a mentor to numerous others who have gone on to become award-winning chefs and restaurant owners themselves.
#12: Emily Hyland: Emmy’s Squared
Emily Hyland is the co-founder of Pizza Loves Emily and Emmy Squared restaurants where all pizzas wood-fired and Detroit-style come to life alongside other savory American fare like the beloved Emmy Burger. Emily participates in operations as the Director of Beverage and Director of Culture. In addition to restaurant life, Emily is an adjunct professor of English at NYC College of Technology and is also a senior yoga instructor and teacher trainer at Love is Juniper, a boutique center she helped her mentor found in Brooklyn in 2017.
#11: Joe Bedia: Pizza Camp
Beddia dedicated himself to the singular vision of making only 40 pizzas a day in a tiny standing-room-only, 300-square-foot space with one employee. There was no phone, no seats, no reservations, no credit cards, no slices. Consistency, simplicity, and a certain personality-driven special sauce were the pizzeria’s defining charms. 
Photo Credit: Joe Bedia
#10: Laura Meyer: Pizza Rock
Laura started making pizza in 2006 at Pyzano’s Pizzeria in Castro Valley, California. It was her first job and Tony Gemignani was her boss. He taught Laura how to make pizza as well as how to throw, and is still her boss/ mentor to this day.
Listen to Laura on the podcast.
#9: Mark Iacono: Lucali
There’s plenty of other very good pizza in New York City that doesn’t require both leaving work early and going to sleep late. But only Lucali feels like a holdover from old-school south Brooklyn – even if it opened in 2006. Dough is rolled out with wine bottles, the owner’s white, drop-top Impala is usually parked out front, and old-looking boxing gloves hang under an even older-looking tin ceiling. It’s definitely one of the most popular choices in NYC these days.
#8: Ann Kim: Pizzeria Lola
Ann Kim will make you question everything you know about pizza and still leave you craving for more. Her Minneapolis restaurants, Pizzeria Lola, Hello Pizza and Young Joni have topped countless top restaurant lists, and led her to recently win the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest. A Korean immigrant, she brings her heritage to the forefront while topping it with cross-continental flavors and charring it all to 800-degree perfection.
#7: John Arena: Metro Pizza
Owning 5 locations with 2 more that are licensed out is no easy feat. John from Metro Pizza is another person on the list many operators have looked up to for so many years. Having operated for many years and also teaching a class about operating a pizzeria business at a local college John has a vast knowledge about growing a business.
Listen to John on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: John Arena
#6: Anthony Falco: Everywhere
Falco worked at Roberta’s for almost nine years and was involved in many aspects of the restaurant with a focus on all things pizza, as Pizza Czar.
Since leaving Roberta’s in 2016, Falco has consulted in Sao Paulo, Bogota, Panama, Toronto, London, New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Charleston, Iowa, and currently has projects in development in Argentina, Spain, Australia, Kuwait, India and Singapore.
Listen to Anthony on the podcast
#5: Frank Pinello: Best Pizza
Frank Pinello, of Best Pizza in Brooklyn, started his business after attending culinary school and working at Roberta’s Pizza. Frank wanted to open a classic New York slice shop using high-quality ingredients at an affordable price. In our interview with Frank, we discuss the process of opening this shop and how he did during the first few years.
Listen to Frank on the podcast.
#4: Scarr Pimental: Scarr’s Pizza
The aesthetic at Scarr’s is ‘70s diner meets your California grandma’s home meets a modest houseboat; details like orange-lacquered serving trays, a millennium-era stock photo of the Manhattan skyline. The owner cut his teeth at Joe’s, Artichoke, and Lombardi’s; here, he can be found behind the counter, manning the gas oven in his signature flour-flecked black tee. It’s a must-visit on any pizza trip to NYC.
#3: Anthony Mangieri: Una Pizza
Anthony Mangieri is considered one of the best, if not the best pizza maker in the U.S. starting his journey as a bread beaker before turning to pizza and truly becoming a student of the craft.
Listen to Anthony on the podcast. 
Photo Credit: Una Pizza Napoletana
#2: Tony Gemignani: Pizza Rock and Tony’s Pizza
Tony Gemignani and Chris Bianco by far were the two most mentioned people on this list. If you’ve been in the pizza business or even read about it there is no doubt that you have heard of Tony Gemignani. Tony is an 11-time world pizza champion and has been on every t.v. show from the today show to The Tonight Show. Tony has turned his notoriety into 16 restaurants and an international school of pizza where he teaches how to make a variety of different types of pizza.
#1: Chris Bianco: Pizza Bianco
When Chris Bianco started Pizzeria Bianco inside the back corner of a neighborhood grocery store in 1988, little did he know that he would be such a driving force in the slow food movement and specifically the artisanal pizza front.
Chris, who won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southwest in 2003, helped spawn a generation of independent and artisanal pizzeria’s, lending his advice, wisdom and food philosophies to dozens of fellow chefs and restaurateurs.
Photo Credit: Chris Bianco
Who’s on your list?
There you have it. The top 50 most influential people in pizza 2020 edition. This list may upset a few folks but hey, that’s how things go, you can’t please everyone. We’ll be making this an annual list that will come out every November. Do good things and be kind and you may find yourself on next year’s list.