Spicy Pie—Fargo, ND
With four locations in the Fargo area, Spicy Pie (spicypiepizza.com) serves up New York-style slices in the Midwest, plus grinders (and its own bottled grinder sauce), nachos, tacos and tostadas. The pizzeria sponsored the Spicy Pie Bombers fastpitch softball team this summer and partnered with local radio station BIG 98.7 to host weekly patio parties throughout August. Spicy Pie offers online ordering and keeps guests entertained with pizza eating challenges, a rewards program, and an e-club featuring tailored promotions and specials.
Tuscan Stone Wood-Fired Pizza—Bellevue and Mercer Island, WA
With 15 specialty pies and two dessert pies, this unassuming Tuscan-style mobile pizzeria bakes exclusively with applewood, fired in a specially built, patent-pending oven that reaches 800°F. Tuscan Stone (tuscanstonepizza.com) has a 4¼-star rating with 95 reviews on Yelp, plus a slick website with eye-catching graphics—including a view from the interior of the dome-shaped oven, complete with white-hot flames leaping from the logs.
Zia Pizza Company—Las Cruces, NM
Zia Pizza Company (ziapizzacompany.com) opened this summer with managing partner and pizza maker Manny Ponce, formerly with Donatos, running the show. Zia features classic pizza styles with a Southwestern kick, including the Mariachi Festival Pizza, made with sliced chicken or beef, tomatoes, jalapeños, cheddar cheese and a “festival” of Mariachi spices, and the Mesilla Valley Pizza, boasting a double helping of pepperoni and green Hatch chiles.
Red Tractor Pizza—Bozeman, MT
Want to talk about community spirit? Red Tractor Pizza (redtractorpizza.com) makes a donation to a local nonprofit or school club with every single order. Owned by restaurateur Tiffany Lach and managed by Adam Pacione, the wood-fired brick-oven pizzeria also strives to buy local ingredients whenever possible and uses Montana organic grains for its crusts. For customers with special dietary needs, Red Tractor offers a gluten-free crust, dairy-free cheese and plenty of vegetarian selections.
