A Look Inside: Food Service

Going out for pizza has always been popular, and it probably always will be. But if you run a pizza restaurant, competition can be stiff. In most cities, there are quite a few pizza restaurants, and to customers, they can all feel very similar. You need to find a way to set yours apart! Here are a few ideas.

Let customers watch the pizza being baked

If you have a wood-fired pizza oven, then consider setting up your restaurant in a way that lets customers watch the pizzas being baked. You could put the oven behind a counter so customers can sit at the counter, watch the pizzas baking, and then be handed their order when it's ready. This may require a little remodelling, but it's worth it since most customers are not used to seeing their food being made.

Offer a unique style of crust

Plenty of places let customers choose their pizza toppings, and sometimes even their sauce or cheese. But if you have unique crust options, that really sets you apart. Experiment making spelt crusts, barley crusts, and even oatmeal crusts to see which ones you like best. If you can manage to make a vegan or gluten-free crust, that's even better since it will allow your pizza restaurant to cater to those with specific dietary needs.

Make your pizzas oval-shaped

Most pizzas are either round or rectangular. If you need a quick and easy way to set your pizza restaurant apart, consider making your pizzas ovals. This is easiest to do with pizza baked in wood-fired ovens since you don't need specifically shaped pizza pans for that baking method. But if you make your pizzas in a normal oven, you can still make ovals on rectangular pizza pans. Shaping the pizza in an oval doesn't really change the flavour, but people will come to refer to your restaurant as the "one with the oval pizzas," which can be enough to help you stand out.

Give your specialty pizzas silly names

If you have some specialty pizzas on your menu, don't just give them generic names like "chicken and ranch." Give them silly names that will have your guests laughing. For example, you could name that chicken and ranch pizza "clucker goes to the ranch." Add a new specialty pie to the menu now and then, and guests will keep coming back to giggle at the names.

If your pizza restaurant stands out, you'll rise in popularity a lot faster. Check out other local pizza restaurants to ensure your ideas are unique.