Blaze Pizza open. FREE pizza tomorrow, June 10 ...

[Robin Garr]

This should draw a crowd. (I left the news release un-edited for your enjoyment. It can be amusing to see how PR-meisters use superlatives to spin the ordinary.)

Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza Open for Business, Hosting Free Pizza Day June 10
Company Celebrates Grand Opening by Offering Free Pizzas to Social Media Fans

LOUISVILLE – The only thing better than pizza is FREE pizza - and that’s exactly what Louisvillians will get from Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza, a new-fast casual pizza concept opening today.

Blaze Pizza today announced the opening of its first store in Louisville, located in the Shelbyville Road Plaza near Nordstrom Rack and Trader Joe’s. To celebrate, the company is offering FREE build-your-own artisanal pizzas on Tuesday, June 10, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. to anyone who follows Blaze Pizza on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.

What sets them apart from other pizza chains? Blaze Pizza offers an interactive assembly line ordering format allowing guests to create their own artisanal pizzas, choosing from both classic and inventive ingredients including house-made sauces, fresh vegetables and hand-selected meats and cheeses – all for under $8. The 11” personal pizzas are then sent to a blazing hot open-flame oven where dedicated pizzasmiths ensure that the thin-crust pies are “fast-fire’d” in under 180 seconds.

Blaze Pizza makes its own dough from scratch using a recipe developed by critically-acclaimed Executive Chef Brad Kent (“The Pizza Whisperer”), which requires a 24-hour fermentation period to produce his signature light-as-air, crisp crust. The new 2,300 square foot restaurant will also offer gluten free and vegan options, as well as an assortment of wines and local Kentucky beers.

“We know that Louisville demands only the very best when it comes to their pizza,” said Wayne Albritton, Blaze Louisville’s Managing Partner and experienced Louisville restaurateur. “If you think about it, there really hasn’t been a good way to enjoy a quality pizza without the wait. Now there is. We believe this will be a game-changer.”

The Louisville Blaze Pizza will be operated by The Millennial Restaurant Group, one of the largest Blaze franchisees, which plans to develop restaurants in Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida. The partnership consists of James Patterson Sr., Jim Patterson II, Ulysses (Junior) Bridgeman, Wayne Albritton and Collins Cogan. The partners are seasoned restaurant industry professionals who have owned and operated numerous successful restaurants in the Louisville and Kentucky markets for decades.

Having come up in the restaurant business on Allo Spiedo pizza, I'm generally a bit of a pizza snob. However, I tried Blaze today, and for the price point, speed, and quality, I was impressed. I like the thin crust, and the pizzas are a good size for one. Because I only had one slice, I won't give a full review, but I'll definitely be in to try more.

[Robin Garr]

Allo Spiedo pizza

Waaaaahhhh!! I miss Allo! I miss Primo, too ...

I don't get the "Fire'd." ??? What's that apostrophe doing there? What is being abbreviated and how? Fire would? Fire did? Fire had? http://realgrammar.wordpress.com/apostrophes/ No letters are being replaced or omitted (See #2)

I'm not taking free pizza from a business that doesn't even understand punctuation...

I don't get the "Fire'd." ??? What's that apostrophe doing there? What is being abbreviated and how? Fire would? Fire did? Fire had? http://realgrammar.wordpress.com/apostrophes/ No letters are being replaced or omitted (See #2)

I'm not taking free pizza from a business that doesn't even understand punctuation...

Ronnie, evidently "Fire'd" is part of their corporate identity. Not intended to be an abbreviation or in the case of this press release a copy of the corporate information. It's not as if they don't understand how to use an apostrophe, they just use it to identify and draw attention!

That makes absolutely no sense. Why not throw some extra letters in there or perhaps a few numbers. They really missed out on being absurd. Why not "Blaze Fast-FireJW56%$'d Pizza." Then they would really stand out. Or, you know, just make a really good pizza and you don't have to gimmick up your name and look ridiculous.

As it stands, they just seem confused about how the language works and for that reason alone, they do not get my business, decent pie or no.

It's like Puccini's and those creepy "smiling teeth" trying to sell me spaghetti and meatballs. I'll pass.

We are so fortunate that Junior decided to make his home here in Louisville. He has created so many jobs and opportunities. He is part owner in local restaurants too. Not just chains. (Bought a candy company too a few years ago.) He has more than 100 Chilis after starting out with the one on Hurstbourne near Shelbyville Road. He started his restaurant business with Wendy's after playing at UofL and in the NBA. Not bad for a basketball player from East Chicago.

[Robin Garr]

We are so fortunate that Junior decided to make his home here in Louisville. He has created so many jobs and opportunities. He is part owner in local restaurants too. Not just chains. (Bought a candy company too a few years ago.) He has more than 100 Chilis after starting out with the one on Hurstbourne near Shelbyville Road. He started his restaurant business with Wendy's after playing at UofL and in the NBA. Not bad for a basketball player from East Chicago.

Absolutely! Don't forget Napa River Grill, too!

That makes absolutely no sense. Why not throw some extra letters in there or perhaps a few numbers. They really missed out on being absurd. Why not "Blaze Fast-FireJW56%$'d Pizza." Then they would really stand out. Or, you know, just make a really good pizza and you don't have to gimmick up your name and look ridiculous.

As it stands, they just seem confused about how the language works and for that reason alone, they do not get my business, decent pie or no.

It's like Puccini's and those creepy "smiling teeth" trying to sell me spaghetti and meatballs. I'll pass.

Im only speculating here but...

I believe this chain has its roots in Southern California. SoCal loves its pot references. Blaze, fire'd etc are all terms that were at some point frequently used by the stoner culture. Pizza has always been a food of choice amongst pot enthusiasts due to its ease of ordering and wide late night availability. Why not intertwine the two??

We are so fortunate that Junior decided to make his home here in Louisville. He has created so many jobs and opportunities. He is part owner in local restaurants too. Not just chains. (Bought a candy company too a few years ago.) He has more than 100 Chilis after starting out with the one on Hurstbourne near Shelbyville Road. He started his restaurant business with Wendy's after playing at UofL and in the NBA. Not bad for a basketball player from East Chicago.

I agree 100%. I'm a little biased, because I'm lucky enough to be one of his employees, but he and his partners do great things for their employees and for the many communities in which they own restaurants. Most of his restaurants are chain restaurants that aren't typical foodie haunts, so they rarely get mention here. But, his business acumen and philanthropy are undeniable.

We braved the crowd for lunch, and I was very pleasantly surprised!

In essence, you go down a cafeteria-like line. First server takes a shell and adds your choice of sauce, second does cheeses, third does meats, fourth does veges. You then pay, get your own drink, and by the time you return your pizza is done! While they have several "standard" pizzas and topings, really you design your own with whatever you want on it. Every pizza is the same price (unless you get vegan cheese - which is an upcharge - or only none or one topping - which is less.

The ingredients were very good quality: real roasted whole garlic cloves, thick-cut mushrooms, nice looking diced chicken breast, et al. The pizza came out bubbly hot. The crust (for a cracker-like crust) may have been a tad softer than I personally prefer, but certainly nothing to stop me from going back. The staff was knowledgeable and friendly (of course there were dozens of them!).

While we don't eat pizza as often as we used to, if we were in the general area we'd definitely come back.

For a local comparison, Coals is actually about the closest; their lunch pizza is about the same size, similar thickness (thinness?), and has a similar range of ingredients, although it is more expensive (unless you get one of the four specials which come with salads or soup).

Blaze is an "assembly line" atmosphere, but given the price and high-appearance of quality I'd put it above the other fast-food type restaurants I can think of.

[Robin Garr]

For a local comparison

Andrew, have you been to Uncle Maddio's (Bardstown at Grinstead)? Although Blaze has been at pains to emphasize their uniquey-ness, this fresh-service concept (like Qdoba and its competitors) sounds very similar to Uncle Maddio's to me, right down to and including the vegan cheese option. Not that there's anything wrong with that - I actually like Uncle Maddio's - but sight unseen, it sounds like a fair comparison.

For a local comparison

Andrew, have you been to Uncle Maddio's (Bardstown at Grinstead)? Although Blaze has been at pains to emphasize their uniquey-ness, this fresh-service concept (like Qdoba and its competitors) sounds very similar to Uncle Maddio's to me, right down to and including the vegan cheese option. Not that there's anything wrong with that - I actually like Uncle Maddio's - but sight unseen, it sounds like a fair comparison.

I have not been there . . . that makes something like 27 other pizza places left to try!

========================

Just looked at the Uncle Maddio's movie on their website, and their menu. It appears that Maddio's has more options of ingredients, but a smaller pizza. That's neither good nor bad, just a tad different. Also, Blaze doesn't offer sandwiches (which Maddio's does), and Blaze's salads looked to be prepared in advance (although with free pizzas we saw nobody ordering one).

[Robin Garr]

Just looked at the Uncle Maddio's movie on their website, and their menu. It appears that Maddio's has more options of ingredients, but a smaller pizza. That's neither good nor bad, just a tad different. Also, Blaze doesn't offer sandwiches (which Maddio's does), and Blaze's salads looked to be prepared in advance (although with free pizzas we saw nobody ordering one).

Thanks for the detailed analysis, Andrew. As a lover of most all things pizza (save perhaps for the mega-corporate models), I've got to try Blaze soon!

What I was getting at, though, was something more basic: It sounds like Blaze joins Uncle Maddio's in the continued expansion of the "fresh burrito" concept, which came first to burritos, then to tacos and now to pizza. Come in, walk through a line, watch worker bees fashion the product to your order from fresh ingredients laid out in neat bins. Fire it quickly, slam it on your tray, and you're good to go.

If I'm gauging this correctly, then Blaze may be faking it a bit with their PR claims to all-new and "unique" status. But it still sounds good.

1. I concur with your analysis

2. However, I'm not sure which chain came first; in other words, Blaze may have been unique to the pizza category when they started, and likely still are "unique" for pizza in 97% of the country.