Pyro Pizza

Pyro Pizza is located at the Cartopia food pod (SE 12th and Hawthorne) in Portland, Oregon. Since when do you see a wood-fired brick pizza oven INSIDE a food cart? You'll find one here! All pizzas at Pyro Pizza are artisan wood-fired!

Pyro Pizza's wood-fired oven...INSIDE the cart!

Pyro Pizza, the creation of John Eads, has been around since November 2009. Eads' first creation, Give Pizza a Chance, still thrives in downtown Portland. While Give Pizza a Chance offers slices and bakes pizza in a "regular" electric oven, Pyro Pizza only serves whole 12" pizzas (good for six small slices) and utilizes a wood-burning oven. John's oven at Pyro Pizza is igloo-shaped, burning alder and pine wood.

Pizza Menu (mid-October 2011)

Menu (mid-October 2011)

At Pyro Pizza, virtually all their ingredients are either local, organic, or made in house. Among the items made from scratch: dough, sauces, mozzarella, pork sausage, and their sodas!

Just some of Pyro Pizza's sodas!
(And of course, there's water for  folks that don't care for soda)

After a few minutes deciding, I ordered John's white truffle pizza ($8): a white pie consisting of mozzarella and romano cheeses and black pepper, finished off with a brushing of white truffle oil.

White Truffle Pizza (Pyro Pizza)

One 12" pie can feed one hungry person (like yours truly in a few minutes), or can be an ideal size to share with someone. This was just a delicious pizza here. With each bite, I caught the earthiness of the white truffle oil -- but John deftly used a proper amount so the truffle oil would not overpower the other components. The burning wood left a lasting impression throughout. The awesome "slight burn spots" or "brown tinges" coated the underside of the pizza, as well as the entire crust. The crust was chewy, yet slight crunchy with each bite. The pizza was not too thin and not too thick (both being cardinal sins). In my book, the right amount of cheese on this pizza. A very simple pie with a luxurious touch, and a very successful one here!

I am now interested in trying John's other wood-fired pizzas, including:

Margherita ($7): red sauce, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil leaves, olive oil
Spinach Mushroom ($7): fresh marinara, mozzarella, and mushrooms, topped w/raw spinach
Fennel Sausage ($9): house-made spicy sausage, red sauce, mozzarella, onions, basil

Pyro Pizza caters to the vegans, offering a vegan cheese option (or no cheese) for pies. While it appears there are no gluten-free pies here yet, John does have salads (Caprese, Caesar, Heirloom Tomato, etc.) for about $5 each.

John, well done! I'll also have to check out Give Pizza a Chance in downtown Portland. I've passed by it a few times and contemplated ordering a slice, only to go elsewhere. Who knows, maybe I'll give "Give Pizza a Chance" a chance next time! 8/10