Pittsburgh To Be Represented In Italy's Pizza World Championship

PITTSBURGH PA - Caliente Pizza & Draft House owner Nick Bogacz and regional chef Eric Von Hansen are pursuing a dream and it’s no pie-in-the-sky one. The pair will represent Pittsburgh in the 28th Pizza World Championship in Parma, Italy in April.

After being named world pizza champions three years in a row at the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas, Bogacz and Von Hansen were invited by 13-time World Pizza Champion Tony Gemignani to join his World Pizza Champions team.

The World Pizza Champions team, founded in 2005 by the famed Gemignani, is a group of elite pizza pros from around the world who represent the craft through competition, education and community service. Inclusion on the team is by invitation only.

“Nick and Eric are dedicated to the craft of pizza in every way, from their development of innovative recipes to their commitment to community service,” Gemignani said in a statement. “The World Pizza Champions are the best-of-the-best and that’s what these guys are.”

Those guys will compete in the Pizza World Championship, the industry’s most well-respected and competitive industry competition with pizzaiolos from over 30 countries and hundreds of chefs vying for a slice of pizza fame. In Parma, several hundred chefs compete in each category.

Nick and Angie Bogacz opened Caliente Pizza & Draft House, their first independent pizza shop, in Bloomfield in 2012. They since have expanded to Hampton, Mt. Lebanon and Aspinwall.

“It was always a dream to own my own pizza shop,” Nick Bogacz said. “Now it’s unbelievable to have the chance to represent the City of Champions across the globe - in pizza, that is.”

Photo via WordWrite Communications.

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