Pine-Richland grad’s business excels at 40th International Pizza Expo and Conference

The title of the workshop was simple and direct:

“You Want to Open a Pizzeria? Now What?”

If those who attended take the presenter’s lead, they may be onto something.

Pine resident Nick Bogacz shared his insight during the 40th International Pizza Expo and Conference in Las Vegas, drawing from decades of experience in the business from delivery driver to owner-operator of a thriving chain of restaurants.

“I think the best thing you can do is take constructive criticism,” he says in a video on YouTube’s Pizza Therapy channel. “When people tell you different things about your pizza in the beginning, taste-testing is the best way to go. That’s what we did with a lot of our recipes.”

From there, his Caliente Pizza & Draft House evolved into a consistent pleaser of connoisseurs’ palates, earning awards and honors including some of its specialty offerings being named Best Pizza in America and Best Pan Pizza in the World.

During the Pizza Expo — held March 19-21 as a combination trade show, educational opportunity and competitive showcase — Caliente earned its fifth World Championship title for the event.

“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,” said Bogacz, a Pine-Richland High School graduate, in a news release.

Individually, team members excelled in various categories of the expo’s World Pizza Games and International Pizza Challenge competitions.

One of the games was the Pizza Triathlon, with Matt Hickey, Caliente’s commissary general manager, capturing first place, and Hampton resident Perry Bogacz, Nick’s son, taking second.

In case you’re wondering, the triathlon involves folding a pizza box, tossing out a 22-ounce dough ball to cover a 16-inch screen and then tossing out another ball to cover a 24-inch screen, all as fast as possible.

Hickey further demonstrated his skills by finishing second in Largest Dough, flattening an 18-ounce ball to stretch 116.5 inches wide by 99.5 inches long, and third in Freestyle Acrobatic Dough Tossing, in which competitors do a routine set to music they provide.

On top of all that, he won third place in the International Pizza Challenge’s Traditional Ooni Division, for pies baked in Ooni-brand ovens. Caliente’s other third-place finishers in the challenge were Perry Bogacz, Northeast Division Traditional category, and director of operations Eric Von Hansen, Northeast Nontraditional Division.

The start of the Pizza Expo coincided with the release of “The Pursuit of Pizza: Recipes From the World Pizza Champions,” of which Nick Bogacz is a co-author.

He serves as president of the World Pizza Champions team, a nonprofit group of professionals who promote their industry “as a respected craft and viable career choice,” according to the team’s website.

In the book are QR codes linking to video tutorials to complement recipes, which include Bogacz’s “Smoked on the Seven Seas.” Proceeds from sales are going toward the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America.

Locally, Caliente supports nonprofits by offering “Cash Cow: Community Night Fundraising,” through which groups can receive a percentage of a designated day’s sales. Such opportunities are available at the pizzeria’s seven locations, in Bloomfield, Crafton, Aspinwall, Hampton, Monroevill and Mt. Lebanon.

For details, visit worldsbestpizza.com/cash-cow-community-night-fundraising.