Freezer Finds: Preheat the oven: Richmond is having a peak frozen pizza moment.
Locally made frozen pizzas abound in Richmond. (Photo courtesy Billy Pie)
An ice-cold pizza craze is taking over Richmond. The capital city is home to several burgeoning frozen pizza brands, many born of pandemic pivots as ways to save inventory, grow sales and expand options for folks dining at home. But the easy, pop-in-the-oven pick-me-ups have stuck around. From Chicago deep-dish and hand-tossed sourdough to neo-Neapolitan and vegan varieties, frozen pizzas are packing the coolers at an array of local establishments.
For over two decades, baker Billy Fallen supplied Richmond’s eateries and grocers with remarkable sourdough bread, pasta, and pizza. In the fall of 2023, he left the restaurant world to focus on a veritable frozen pizza factory.
Getting the scale-up just right has been his work. "Whether you're making 50 or 100 pizzas a night in a pizzeria, or you're making 1000s a day, it's just a matter of being organized, having your systems down,” Fallen says, “and having great people help you pull it off so it's just super efficient."
Fallen has simplified and automated much of the pizza-making process. Quality toppings have been carefully selected and imported in high volume. Their dough is sourced through Lamonica’s, a professional high-volume dough maker in New Jersey, and shipped to their production kitchen in Richmond, where it ferments for several days. Once proofed, the dough gets a gentle pat from a dough press. Pizzas are topped by hand and baked in a blazing hot, 780-degree brick oven in under two minutes. State-of-the-art digital, gas-powered, brick ovens with rotating floors expedite the process. Par-baked pizzas are transferred to cooling racks, frozen, and vacuum-packed. The staff at Billy Pie can take a dough ball to a packaged frozen pizza in less than an hour. The use of automation allows for a small staff of about 12 to make and distribute 900,000 pizzas a year. The result is a consistent, top-quality, par-baked neo-Neapolitan pizza with all the charm of a brick oven.
For sale at local markets, breweries, and vineyards, Billy Pie offers a classic white and classic red cheese pizza, Margherita, Mushroom & Ricotta, White Pizza with Calabrian Chili Peppers, and Mushrooms & Calabrian Chili pizza. The classic white and red pizzas are also available on a gluten-free, cauliflower-based crust. Distribution is already going strong in Virginia, D.C., Maryland, and Pennsylvania, and there are plans to be in 14 other states in the coming year. Fallen is also open to expansion through private labeling. Which brings us to our next pizza player.
The legendary Greek restaurant and market of Richmond, Stella’s, has joined the frozen pizza game with a zesty private label made by Billy Pie. Stella’s frozen pizza is topped with red sauce, spinach, feta, and kalamata olives for a nice salty Mediterranean moment. They also stock Billy Pie in their market and kitchen, and you can get yourself a piping hot, white or red pie with fresh toppings over the counter or a frozen one in the case.
Richmond’s plant-based frozen pizza brand, Udderless, spun off from an old favorite from the Fan. The Hop Craft Beer and Pizza began making frozen pizza during the pandemic, and were sure to include a plant-based option among them. They have since closed the doors to the pizzeria and re-emerged as Udderless, a plant-based frozen pizza option that has won over cheese pizza lovers.
Their plant-based cashew cheese recipe was developed by owner Evan Byrne after another local vegan cheese purveyor ceased operations. The recipe was well-received among customers and won several awards from Vegan Action. They’re doing a plain Udderless Cheese Pizza and have sourced plant-based pepperoni from The BE-Hive in Nashville. Also in their repertoire: Jalapeño-Pineapple, and Greek Pizza with red onion, olives, and grape tomatoes. Co-Founder Andrew McQuillan, 37, handles production. Pizzas are hand-stretched, topped, and par-baked in the big oven at Hatch Kitchen before chilling in the freezer overnight. Then they are vacuum sealed, packed, and shipped out to local markets or distribution centers. The company presently has distribution deals with DashMart, Webstaurant, and local grocers.
Secret Cheese: They also still produce frozen cheese pizza made with cow milk mozzarella under The Hop brand name.
Penny’s Imperfect Pizza
A side project of Olive Branch Garden Farm in Barboursville, VA, has been popping up in Richmond shops and farmers markets. Owners Amanda and Matt Terillo joined the COVID sourdough craze with Penny’s Imperfect Pizza. They started to make handcrafted round-ish sourdough pizzas using veggies from their farm and a blend of flour, including local flour from Deep Roots Milling. Hot pizzas were sold alongside veggies at the farmers market until they pivoted to frozen pizza. Though they still plan to pop up with an oven occasionally.
They currently operate out of a commercial kitchen in the Beacon in Charlottesville, using a blast chiller to quickly freeze their pizzas at -20 degrees. At local shops and farmers’ markets, you can find imaginative veg-forward frozen features like their hit Lemon Radish Ricotta Pizza. Pesto is also a popular topping and is made with their home-grown arugula. This year, they plan on expanding their production and developing new flavors, Amanda says, “We are working on a meat, a veg, a vegan, or cheese-less one. It's gonna be Pizza Rossa. So we're gonna use those San Marzano tomatoes and then heavy sauce with roasted garlic." It serves as a flexible base for whatever toppings you may want to add at home.
Redemption BBQ and Market
Fresh and frozen Chicago deep dish is the succulent open secret at Redemption BBQ and Market. Pit Master/Minister John Vest pays homage to Lou Malnati’s legendary deep dish influence. Pies can be bought fresh and hot by pre-order Thursday through Sunday, or you can pick up one for later from the freezer case. They offer par-cooked pizzas in a deep, buttery, cornmeal crust that you can heat at home. Go for a classic Chicago deep dish with Italian sausage or try a vegetarian smoked mushroom deep dish pizza. Other topping options are ‘roni and sausage combo featuring Pasture-raised pork pepperoni by Tempesta Artisan Salumi; the Meat your Maker with sausage pepperoni, house-smoked bacon, and ham. A southern spin on BBQ pizza includes deep-dish options with smoked brisket, pork, or chicken and their house-made sauces.
Delzani
This one-man operation is based out of the kitchen at Shyndigz. Chef Matthew Williams says he pitched the pizza idea to their owner, Bryon Jessee, and they decided to bring Delzani on board.
“After 25 years in the culinary field, I wanted to get my version of pizza out there and without having a business partner or the capital to do a Chef Suite,” says Williams, “Developing a par-baked pizza was the closest thing to fresh-baked.”
Delzani is using King Arthur 00 flour and Alta Cucina tomatoes to create a solid spin on neo-Neapolitan style pizza. Buy them frozen or hot exclusively at Shyndigz. Their roster includes: Zesty Meatball with Red Onion, Italian Peppers & Sausage, Classic Cheese, Three Cheese, Pepperoni, and Chorizo and Hot Honey. Williams says, “I eventually will work in a white sauce and pesto. Also, strombolis could be a thing too!”
Joey D’s Frozen Foods - Frozen Pizza adjacent.
Mozzarella sticks are a given on the menu of any decent American pizzeria or restaurant these days, and Richmond is home to a whopper. Joe Conigliaro took over Sergio’s Pizzeria in Midlothian in 1991. By 2012, they became known for their hefty hand-breaded, whole-milk mozzarella sticks and marinara. Conigliaro’s wife, Cynthia, and two daughters have since joined the operations at Sergio’s. In 2023, the family debuted Joey D’s Frozen Foods out of Hatch Kitchen and set out to produce monster three-ounce, five-inch “Mozzarella Logs” and other flash-frozen cheese novelties. Drawing upon Conigliaro family ties at Roma Foods going back to the 60s, they are now producing their appetizers for commercial distribution through Performance Food Group in a custom 10,000 square foot facility.
*A version of this was published in Richmond Magazine
Comments