Pittsburgh Pizza Chain Wins International Awards

PITTSBURGH, PA — The Pittsburgh-based Caliente Pizza & Draft House chain won numerous awards at the 40th International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas this week.

Matt Hickey, Caliente’s commissary general manager, is the winner of the restaurant’s fifth World Championship award, this time in the largest dough stretch category. Hickey also received a silver medal in Pizza Acrobatics and placed third in the Traditional Ooni Division.

“I feel tremendous pride about having been able to represent Caliente in the awards this year,” Hickey said. said Hickey. “This world championship victory is a testament to the excellence of our team, and of an environment that has allowed me to hone my craft more and more every day and take my passion to the next level.”

The other awardees are Caliente owner Nick Bogacz’s son, Perry Bogacz, who won a silver medal for the Pizza Triathlon and placed third in the Northeast Division Traditional Category, and Caliente’s Director of Operations, Eric Von Hansen, who placed third in the Northeast Non-traditional Division.

“I couldn’t be prouder of our team for performing so well among a group of tremendously talented pizza chefs from all over the world,” Nick Bogacz said. “This fifth world championship title speaks volumes about Caliente’s dedication to introducing creative and unique ideas to the pizza world, and we can’t wait to cook up even more amazing things with each new year.”