Pizza King Podcast: Empowering Pizzeria Leadership
The Pizza King Podcast is where pizzeria owners and operators go to sharpen their skills, build better teams, and grow more profitable businesses. Hosted by Tyrell Reed—franchise leader, coach, and author of Next Level Leadership—each episode delivers practical insights, real-life stories, and expert advice to help you win in the pizza business. Whether you're opening your first shop or scaling your tenth, this show is your guide to pizza business excellence.
Episodes
142 episodes
He Left the Pizza Business for 13 Years. Here's Why He Came Back.
John Gristina grew up around pizza in the Bronx, fought it for years, lost a partnership, and walked away from the industry for 13 years. Then COVID hit. He started doing pop-ups. And the business that once burned him pulled him back in. <...
How to Build Accountability in Your Pizza Shop Without Being the Bad Guy
In this week's Take Out Tips, Tyrell Reed gives you one practical tip for your shop this week: build accountability without being the bad guy. Vague expectations produce inconsistent results. Your team is not the problem - unclear s...
From Michelin Stars to Maryland: How Chef Sed Built Black Sicilian Pizza
https://blacksicilian.com/bio/sedrick-crawleyChef Sedrick Crawley built something that does not look like anything else in the pizza space. Black Sicilian Pizza Company is a ghost kitchen in Maryland delivering 100 to 120 pies a day — mi...
Should You Switch Your Flour? What Operators Are Actually Doing
The flour debate is here. New York just moved on potassium bromate. California already did it. And if you run a pizzeria, it's coming for you whether you're in those states or not.On this Takeout Tips Thursday solo episode, Tyrell Reed b...
Giovanni Labbate on Premium Pizza, Food Trucks, and Tievoli Pizza Bar
Giovanni Labbate from Tievoli Pizza Bar joins the Pizza King Podcast to talk about building a premium pizza brand, growing from food truck operations into a successful restaurant, competing on major pizza stages, and refusing to race to the bot...
Takeout Tip: Go Do the Work
In this Takeout Tip episode of the Pizza King Podcast, Tyrell Reed gives a quick store update from Westshore Valrico as April wraps up. Sales were up in January, February, and March, but the bigger lesson is where that gr...
What Pizzeria Owners Need to Know About Hospitality and Mental Health
Chef Vincent Tropepe joins the Pizza King Podcast for a conversation every pizzeria owner, restaurant operator, and kitchen leader should hear. Chef Vincent has opened 95 restaurants, worked in serious New York kitchens, written mul...
How We Got a 6X Return on Pizza Ads
Join our free community on Skool https://www.skool.com/tyrells-group-9324/aboutIn this episode, I break down what we’re doing right now to market the store better a...
How Troy’s Italian Kitchen Is Growing Through Relationships
Neel Vaidya from Troy’s Italian Kitchen joined me for a conversation packed with real lessons for pizza operators. We talked about smart pop-up strategy, local partnerships, vegan positioning, Pizza Expo, leadership, customer service, and how h...
Pizza Expo Floor Stories With Tara, Tony, and Brett
This week on the Pizza King Podcast, I’m bringing you a different kind of Takeout Tips episode.Instead of one topic, I’m sharing a few quick conversations I recorded live from the Pizza Expo floor at the Perfect Crust booth. These are sh...
Angel City Pizza’s Vito DeCandia Keeps It All The Way Real
What happens when an old-school pizza guy sits down and tells the truth?In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, I talk with Vito DeCandia of Angel City Pizza about what has changed in pizza, what still matters, and why so many operato...
Why I Turned Down a 40 Pizza Order
I turned down a 40-pizza order, and I want to tell you why.On the surface, it sounded like easy business. Big order. Multiple pizzas. More revenue. But once I heard the full details, I knew it was not the right fit for our operation. Thi...
The Kind of Customer Every Pizzeria Wants - Frank Zocco
In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, I talk with Frank Zocco from Dough Daddy Cooks and Slice Mob about pizza, community, and supporting local shops the right way. We get into positive reviews, ingredient quality, what real pizza people l...
Social Media Is Not a Marketing Plan for Your Pizzeria
In this solo episode, I break down a simple truth a lot of operators miss. Social media is not your marketing plan. It is a platform. The real plan is how you drive traffic, get people to try your shop, capture them into your loyalty system, an...
Pizza Expo Recap, Relationships, Tech, and Community
In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, I’m recapping my trip to Pizza Expo in Las Vegas and sharing what really stood out to me. Yes, there was plenty of new equipment, pizza tech, AI, and tools worth checking out. I talk about ...
Why Relationships Still Matter in the Pizza Business
I just got back from Pizza Expo in Las Vegas, and before I do a full recap on next week’s feature episode, I wanted to share one quick takeaway that stood out to me right away. Relationships still matter.In this short Takeout Tip episode...
From Food Truck to Pizza Shop, Leadership and Operations Lessons from Patriot Wood Fired Pizza
In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, I sit down with Jake Johnson of Patriot Wood Fired Pizza in Jefferson City, Tennessee. Jake shares how he went from working in kitchens to launching a wood fired pizza food truck, building a loyal foll...
Pizza Shop Growth Is Up, But Are Your Operations Getting Better?
In this episode, I break down what I’m seeing inside the store right now as we move from growth mode into adjustment mode. Sales are up, momentum is real, and we’ve made solid progress from Period 1 to Period 3. But better sales do not always m...
How Mike Pitera Built a Pizzeria Around 7 Styles of Pizza - Pizza a Modo Mio
In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, Tyrell Reed sits down with Mike Pitera of Pizza a Modo Mio in Charleston, South Carolina for a real conversation about what it takes to grow a modern pizzeria. Mike breaks down how he went from washing...
The Difference Between Ownership and Influence
In this Takeout Tip episode, Tyrell Reed breaks down a hard truth that every pizzeria owner, partner, and investor needs to hear. Respect from your team does not come from ownership. It comes from leadership. If you think putting money into the...
What Happens When You Make Pizza Because You Love It
In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, Tyrell Reed sits down with Adam Marks, known online as I Am Pizza Adam, for a conversation about pizza from a different angle. Adam is not building a pizzeria, chasing a pop-up model, or trying to turn...
Your Team Isn’t the Problem. Your System Is.
If your store runs smooth when you’re there, then falls apart when you leave, this episode is for you. In this Takeout Tip, Tyrell Reed breaks down a simple truth. The dinner rush is not the problem. Your lack of readiness is. When ...
Stop Running Out of Cash: Pizza Shop Cash Flow Basics With a CFO
In this episode of The Pizza King Podcast, Tyrell Reed sits down with Rob Te Braake of Insight Matters, a fractional CFO and accounting firm, for a practical conversation on the numbers that keep a pizzeria alive.Rob breaks down why most...
Pizza Shop Turnaround Update, The Week Profit Finally Shows Up
Tyrell Reed is back with a Takeout Tip and a real store update from the Pizza King turnaround. He shares why taking a break matters before burnout hits, then gets into the numbers, the moves, and what your shop can copy this week. Y...
College Admissions From the Inside, Coach Tony Le’s Playbook for Parents
You hire teenagers. You coach teenagers. You lead teenagers. So this episode matters.I sit down with Coach Tony Le from egelloC (Eagle Lock), a former UC Berkeley admissions reader who has reviewed over 10,000 applications. ...