My granddaughter just turned four years old. With this abundance of years on the planet she has developed a picky palate. In fact, the only thing she will eat is exotic unicorn or dragon meat with a tossing of Tinkerbelle’s dust on a bed of Willy Wonka’s vegetables. Even though she has been eating with me in restaurants since she was 2 weeks old and knows how to order, and complement the chef, she has now decided that she needs to control everything – including what she eats. I tried something new to satisfy her discerning penchant upon hearing about a new pizza joint where you can literally make your own pizza. With late hours, healthy options and cheap prices, Blaze Pizza desires to become the perfect meal for any kid. This pizza place offers all you can eat toppings, gluten-free options and vegan cheese.

We all ordered individual pizzas with the boys heaping meatballs, sausage and pepperoni. I tried the white sauce, roasted garlic, sautéed onions, chicken, and mushrooms with a dusting of sea salt on the top. I was impressed with the quality and quantity or items you could choose to sprinkle on your pie. It was one of the best pizza’s I have tried. Amazed and intrigued I asked for where this genius concept came from.
The Manager told me that Blaze offers exceptional quality cooked at lightning fast speed. Designed by Executive Chef Bradford Kent (aka The Pizza Whisperer), his goal was to put fresh, made-from-scratch dough along side healthful, artisanal ingredients on an assembly line. You get to pick as much or as little as you want. From towering of meat and cheeses to fresh vegetables, you have no limit to what you put on your pizza. Then they place it in a super hot oven, cook for 180 seconds and what comes out is a fast-fire’d, perfectly crisp perfection pizza.
It is a chain (which I usually avoid) but this “do it yourself” pizzeria spoke to my need also to finally get the pizza I want, not the one the tossers in the back decide. Blaze is a new and growing franchise with over 100 locations now. Locally one of its owners, Mitch Wolf, has been a marketing instructor at Cal Poly for 10 years.
The concept behind Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza is simple: You pick your crust, sauce, cheese, and toppings, and your pie is popped into a blazing-hot oven for a mere 180 seconds. It then emerges, ready for your enjoyment. It’s fresh. It’s fast. It’s exactly what you want it to be.

If you are not creative or wanting a unicorn pizza, they offer Signature Pizzas with plenty of choices to satisfy the artisan within you. I had to try the Art Lover with artichokes, mozzarella, ricotta, chopped garlic, and red sauce dollops. It was fantastic and I enjoyed a draft beer with my pizza while Gary inhaled the S’more cookie before his Meat Eater with pepperoni, crumbled meatballs, red onion, mozzarella, and red sauce.
I have been there 4 times last week, as my granddaughter is obsessed with the pizza and it was her birthday week. Everything I have had is fresh and the staff is friendly, helpful and fun. It is the perfect food for families or starving students whose mom told them to eat healthy. This is the best fast food alternative I have ever experienced.
Blaze Pizza is located at 892 East Foothill Blvd in San Luis Obispo; call them at (805) 788-0619. They are open daily, Monday thru Saturday from 10:30 to 11:00pm and Sunday from 11:00pm to 11:00pm.