We all know these lyrics from Dean Martin’s classic love ballad; When the moon hits your eye, like a big-a pizza pie, that’s amore. The song permanently linked these three things; pizza, a popular staple food that people can’t seem to get enough of, the moon, that satellite orbiting our planet, which captivates us all, and love, an enduring elemental emotion that is uniquely definable to each individual. This is certainly not an all-inclusive top-three list, but it is irrefutable that people are drawn to each of these things.
When it comes to pizza, the average person eats 288 slices each year, with thirteen percent of the US population consuming pizza on any given day, which amounts to more than 40 million Americans biting into a slice of doughy heaven every single day.
But as much as people love eating pizza, Certified Master Pizzaiolo Billy Manzo, Jr. loves creating it even more. I used the word ‘creating’ intentionally, because Manzo doesn’t just make pizza, like any artist, he creates it. Pizza is both a passion and an obsession for Manzo, and his ultimate creation, Chef Billy Manzo Pizza, is his latest masterpiece. Manzo confidently tells everyone that he has created the best frozen pizza in the world. He makes a great case for such a bold statement, but it didn’t come easy, as nothing worthwhile ever does.
Growing up in Providence in an Italian-Armenian family, the kitchen was the place everyone gathered to talk and socialize, and food was at the center of it all. Manzo fell in love with cooking at an early age, and he brought that home-kitchen approach to the frozen pizza he created in his name.
Manzo’s personal journey has taken him from his family’s kitchen in Providence, across the country to Las Vegas, and across the ocean to Italy. He has learned much along the way, perfecting his craft. He began by selling pizzas out of the back of a cigar lounge that he owned on Federal Hill for 16 years. His pizza became so popular that Manzo and his wife, Christine, launched a wholesale company, selling pizza dough and pizza shells throughout Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, in more than 200 locations.
After the birth of their daughter, Manzo decided to go in a different direction and opened a retail restaurant, Federal Hill Pizza, in Warren. Several years later, in 2015, Manzo purchased the iconic Castle Theater on Chalkstone Avenue. He wanted to bring the quality and tradition of his Warren location to the neighborhood where he grew up.
Manzo’s cooking has been featured on the Phantom Gourmet, as well as the Food Network. He is the first American to go to Italy to be certified as Master, and he is one of only two certified Master pizzaiolos in the United States.
Now, after several years in development, Manzo is proud to deliver a frozen pizza made with 100% authentic Italian ingredients, curated directly in Italy. Every aspect of this pizza is carefully sourced to reflect the true flavors of Italy, including the tomatoes and the dough, which is made with water from the Friuli Dolomites. Manzo says that his pizza is the only frozen pizza using Galbani, Italy’s number one cheese, as reflected on the front of the pizza box.
This is a pizza crafted with love, and you can find Chef Billy Manzo Pizza in local shops and in supermarkets throughout the state.
