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Tag: Blaze pizza

A new Pizza Stop location joins the growing local pizza fray

Like a rising pizza crust, new pizza restaurants continue to pop up in Rochester, the latest being a Pittsford location for an old downtown favorite: Pizza Stop.

The New York-style pizzeria has opened a third location in Pittsford Plaza next to Michael’s Crafts. The restaurant’s history began in Brooklyn and continued on State Street in downtown Rochester, where it has been located since 1986. Pizza Stop also has a shop on Ridgeway Avenue in Greece.

Logo for Pizza Stop

“Both our customers and our employees are excited for the arrival of Pizza Stop,” said Mike Wilmot, general manager of Pittsford Plaza. “It brings a new offering to The Plaza, and is a local business, rooted in family tradition.”

Pizza Stop sells thin-crust slices and pies in the New York City tradition, as well as the thick-crust Sicilian style favored by many old-time Rochesterians.

Meanwhile, Create A Pizza just opened a few weeks ago at 766 Monroe Ave., capitalizing on the trend of custom-made personal-size and slightly larger pizzas. Create A Pizza occupies a storefront that had been occupied by Pizza Hut for years.

Two other local pizzerias that opened in 2018 use super-high-temperature ovens to produce customized pizzas in just a few minutes.

Blaze Pizza, at 1100 Jefferson Road in Henrietta, is part of a chain based in Queens. Blaze has also opened restaurants in Buffalo and Binghamton and is planning to open one in Syracuse.

Fire Crust, a locally owned restaurant, offers thin-crust, one-person pizzas made to order at 4843 West Henrietta Road, Henrietta. The restaurant also makes milk shakes and ice cream treats featuring ice cream from Pittsford Farm Dairy.

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Blaze Pizza to donate April 11 proceeds to Foodlink

Blaze Fast-Fire'd Pizza opened on Jefferson Road in March..
Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza opened on Jefferson Road in March.

A newly opened Henrietta pizzeria will donate all of its grand opening event proceeds to a local charity.

Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza, a fast-casual restaurant that serves custom artisan pizza, will host Donation Day next Wednesday. The April 11 event will allow patrons to pay whatever they want for their meal and 100 percent of the proceeds will be donated to Foodlink Inc., the Finger Lakes and Genesee Valley food bank and regional hub.

“Blaze Pizza is so excited to welcome the public to our restaurant to support Foodlink. Foodlink is a fantastic organization that distributed 17.4 million pounds of food in 2017, and we’re proud to help them continue that great work,” said Chad Tooley, Blaze Pizza’s Henrietta general manager, in a statement. “This Donation Day will give our new neighbors in Henrietta the opportunity to experience our delicious menu while giving back to a good cause.”

Blaze Pizza was founded in Irvine, Calif., in 2012 by Elise and Rick Wetzel. The pizza chain operates more than 265 restaurants in 40 states, Canada and Kuwait.

Each restaurant features an interactive, open-kitchen format that allows guests to customize one of the menu’s signature pizzas or create their own for about $8. The thin-crust pizzas are cooked in an open-flame oven in 180 seconds. The pizzeria offers gluten-free dough and vegan cheese for those with special diets.

“At Blaze, we’re all about creating an engaging dining experience where guests can enjoy artisanal pizza that’s both fast and affordable,” said Jim Mizes, Blaze Pizza president and CEO.

Foodlink runs more than 30 unique food-related programs aimed at ending hunger, improving nutrition, empowering individuals with food literacy and strengthening the regional food system. The 500-member organization distributes food and resources to area soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, group homes, senior centers, day cares, after-school programs and other nonprofit organizations.

[email protected] / 585-653-4021
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It’s pizza for Pi Day

Employees work at a Blaze Pizza location in Pasadena, Calif. (Provided)
Employees work at a Blaze Pizza location in Pasadena, Calif. (Provided)

Fresh off a grand opening that had crowds lined up out the door, brand-new Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza is pulling another stunt.

The store at 1100 Jefferson Road in Henrietta is offering pizza pies at a bargain price for Pi Day — the day the date (3/14) corresponds with the first three digits of the mathematical notation of pi, or 3.14.

Blaze is offering its build-your-own, 11-inch, personal pizzas for $3.14 instead of the usual $8.50. The offer is good all day at almost any Blaze in the United States or Canada, though the Henrietta store is the only one in the Rochester area. On March 2, the store’s grand opening offered free build-your-own pizzas to all comers, who lined up out the door and across the front of a neighboring store.