School Pizza is making big waves with foodies in Bluffton and Hilton Head Island.  Its soft, airy crust reminds me of a thick focaccia bread with crispy edges.  Quite frankly, it’s delicious and the line of folks waiting to order their pizza each weekend backs me up on that.

Operating out of a “food van,” School Pizza is bringing their pillowy pizza to local brewery parking lots.  Since they only operate once a week, their demand has soared.   Depending on the weather, you can often find a line of folks before they even open their van’s window.  

Each week, they hand craft their thick dough, allow it to rise and parbake the pizzas on the morning of their “bakes” (aka when they are open for business).  This helps the dough develop plenty of air pockets but also cuts down on the on-site baking time which helps quickly move pizzas on ”bake day.”  The parbakes are topped with cheese first, then toppings and baked together.  Then, during the boxing, they finish it with sauce… similar to a traditional Detroit style pizza method. 

The result is a perfect texture combo in one bite.  Edges are perfectly crispy with the slightest bit of oiliness soaked up by the soft dough full of yeasty holes.  My favorite topping, pepperoni, makes the pizza have a little extra crisp and saltiness and reminds me of my fav pizza from the 90s.  

Owner, Marie Lorenzo, recently shared a little more about School Pizza with me:

Brooke: What inspired you to start school pizza?

Marie:  We started making pizza at home, and then started getting good at it! Through feedback from friends and family, we felt like we had a commercially viable product. 

Brooke:  Tell me about the selection of your name. 

Marie: The shape of our pizza reminded us of traditional school pizza. It started out as satire, but we ran with it and we’re not looking back. We also love 90’s nostalgia of that era!

Brooke:  What do you love most about this business?

Marie: We love the art of service and the joy that it has brought us throughout this venture. Our community has been extremely supportive, even when we mess up!

Brooke:  What else would you like to share?  

Marie:  We have plans to continue growing the business, and with the community’s ongoing support, they can expect to see a brick and mortar location one day.

Brooke: I’m certainly excited to hear that news!  

Give School Pizza a try soon.  Here are their upcoming dates:

10/26, 3-6pm at Lot 9 Brewing Company in Bluffton

11/15, 5-8pm at Side Hustle Brewery in Bluffton

11/23, 3-6pm at Locals Only Taproom on the island.

Follow them on Instagram (@schoolpizza) to learn more and to keep up with their schedule.

Brooke is a Hilton Head freelance writer and shares her best tips for island life with her Instagram @hifromhhi followers.

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