As renowned pizzaiolo and pizzeria operator Tony Gemignani prepares to open the latest location of Slice House by Tony Gemignani, the move has clearly put him in a nostalgic mood.
A new Slice House will open in Milpitas, California, on November 8 on Great Mall Parkway within The Fields mixed-use complex. Gemignani is a native of the area and once worked for his brother, Frank, at Pyzano’s Pizzeria in nearby Castro Valley, California. For the new Slice House location, Gemignani has revived a popular pizza from the Pyzano’s menu, in keeping with his tradition of developing an exclusive specialty pie for every store opening.
It’s a shrewd marketing strategy, ensuring that fans of Gemignani and the red-hot Slice House Concept will journey to feast on a new pizza in his repertoire.
Related: Inside Tony Gemignani’s Dive into the World of Pizzeria Franchising
For the Milpitas location, it’s the True Italian. That pie was Gemignani’s late mother Eileen’s favorite on the Pyzano’s menu. The New York thin-crust style pizza is topped with pesto, mozzarella, garlic, tomato, Romano cheese, oregano and garlic oil. It’s offered by the slice only, and customers have the option to add goat cheese and/or ricotta cheese and hot honey.
“Growing up in Fremont, Milpitas was right next door,” Gemignani noted in a social media video. “I’m super-excited that this store is opening.”
Pyzano’s opened in Castro Valley in 1991; Frank Gemignani was just 22 at the time. He eventually closed the restaurant in 2012, but it served as a launchpad of sorts for his younger brother, Tony, who went on to become one of the pizza community’s best known and most successful figures.
Operated by Pizza Craft LLC representatives Ratika Tyagi and Shafaq Chawla, Slice House Milpitas features an expansive menu of Gemignani’s famous New York, Sicilian, Grandma, and Detroit style pizzas, available by the slice or whole pie, with gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options.
“Bringing Slice House to Milpitas is especially exciting because this area represents the heart of innovation in the Bay Area,” Gemignani said in a statement. “We’re grateful to Ratika Tyagi and Shafaq Chawla for their leadership in making this possible, and I’m looking forward to sharing our artisan pizzas with such a vibrant community.”
“Working alongside Tony Gemignani across our other Slice House locations in Castro Valley and San Leandro has been such a rewarding experience, and we’re thrilled to extend that to Milpitas,” said Tyagi. “Our goal is to build a welcoming neighborhood hub where locals, commuters and shoppers alike can gather over great pizza and genuine hospitality.”
The restaurant offers indoor seating for 22 guests and limited sidewalk seating.
The Fields is home to a dynamic mix of retailers, including Trader Joe’s, LaserAway, Orangetheory and Starbucks. There are also schools, medical centers and major tech employers nearby as well as the new Milpitas BART railway station, which connects residents to the greater Bay Area.
Slice House originally opened in San Francisco’s historic Italian neighborhood of North Beach in 2010. The concept has shown remarkable growth since Gemignani announced franchising plans for Slice House in early 2023. By March 2025, there were 17 Slice House stores open or in development; the company said the Milpitas location is No. 27, marking 10 new stores this year alone, although one in Boulder, Colorado, has not yet opened—it will debut next month.
