Dough Boy Pizza, founded by industry innovator Erica Barrett, has opened its second location in Atlanta, this time in a partnership with renowned craft beer bar Harlem Hops. The new joint operation debuted on September 22 in the Lee + White Food Hall.
The franchise location is owned and operated by Kim Harris, Danielle Scarborough, Stacey Lee Spratt and Dalen Spratt, all proud graduates of Clark Atlanta University. In fact, they call themselves The CAU Collective.
Barrett informally announced the new location and partnership with Harlem Hops at PMQ’s Pizza Power Forum in Atlanta earlier this month. Barrett, who also appeared on PMQ’s August 2023 cover, was a speaker on the topic of leveraging technology for building the pizzeria of the future.
Related: Talking ‘smart restaurants’ with Erica Barrett of Dough Boy Pizza
The new Dough Boy Pizza location will uniquely serve as the Atlanta home of Harlem Hops, which was the first African American-owned craft beer bar in Manhattan. Moreover, Harlem Hops was a James Beard Award semifinalist in 2023 and has locations in Harlem and at the James Beard Foundation-curated Market 57 in Chelsea.
“Not only will customers enjoy freshly-made, authentic, Neapolitan-style pizza, but they’ll also have the opportunity to pair it with some of our in-house signature brews,” The CAU Collective said in a statement. “Many of the beers at Dough Boy Pizza x Harlem Hops will be made by local, small-batch, family-owned businesses, and, in some cases, by people of color.”
Dough Boy Pizza specializes in Neapolitan-inspired pizza with a thin crust, mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce, offering both traditional toppings (such as pepperoni and sausage) and unique options (like short rib with caramelized onions and crawfish). A standout feature of Dough Boy Pizza is that customers order directly from electronic kiosks, with no cashiers, and everything is managed through digital screens.
“With Dough Boy Pizza’s concept, we’re helping franchisees control labor and food costs through our technology-focused approach,” said Barrett, who initially gained national attention from her successful appearances on Shark Tank and CNBC’s The Profit as well as on Food Network competition shows. “This concept is perfect for millennials who want to grab their pizza and go—we wanted to build a restaurant of the future.”
Ryan Cameron, the famed host of Radio One’s Ryan Cameron Uncensored, opened Dough Boy Pizza’s first franchise last year at The Gallery at South DeKalb.
With community service being a priority for Harlem Hops, the foursome comprising the CAU Collective is looking to launch the Atlanta branch of Harlem Hopes, a scholarship program for students looking to attend HBCUs. The Harlem Hops co-owners hope to continue inspiring not only future HBCU grads but also those in Atlanta neighborhoods and the Black craft beer industry.
It’s been a big year for Barrett, who, in addition to opening the new Dough Boy Pizza/Harlem Hops operation, also launched SO’QUE, a BBQ pop-up, in Atlanta’s Buckhead district. That followed shortly after Barrett was crowned “Master of Que” on the fifth season of The Food Network’s BBQ Brawl, a competition series created by Bobby Flay.
