We found a surprisingly amazing pizza spot in the Catalina foothills of Tucson. You would never think that in a suburban strip mall you would find a world-class Neapolitan pizzaiolo, but that’s Fiamme Pizza owner Scott Volpe, who’s won awards at the World Pizza Games in Las Vegas, NV and the Campionato Mondiale Della Pizza for his culinary and pizza acrobatics skills. The restaurant started with a pizza truck and then expanded, with Fiamme Pizza as his first brick-and-mortar location. He still has the pizza truck, but when we walked in Scott was busy making pizzas in the front of Fiamme.
Scott has studied his craft in Napoli, Puglia, and Los Angeles. He uses the best ingredients, and we knew he was a vero pizzaiolo when we spotted the bags of Caputo flour on the table. Fiamme’s pizza has a delicious, chewy and blistered crust that can only be made in a wood fired pizza oven. Scott gives it the perfect crust as he carefully turns his pizzas on the side of the wood fire oven. This no frills pizza place, but it is definitely worth the visit. Bring your own beer and wine (they don’t have a liquor license, so no overpriced wine list here) and you’ll have the perfect Italian dinner. If you classic Neapolitan piazza isn’t your style, Fiamme also offers slices and even a New York style thin crust pizza.
Thank you to Alaska Airlines for sponsoring this post.