Midwest U.S. Pizza Team Culinary and Acrobatic Trials June 13th, Evanston, Il. at Panino’s Pizza

Click HERE to register for events!

The U.S. Pizza Team will be holding it’s Midwest Culinary and Acrobatic Trials at Panino’s Pizza in Evanston, Il. Monday June 13th, 2016 (1968 Dempster St, Evanston, IL 60202). Events will include a culinary trial, Freestyle Acrobatics, Fastest Pie Maker and Largest Dough Stretch . Prizes will include trips to the World Pizza Championships for culinary, cash awards, medals and the bragging rights of being the Best in the Midwest for the other events. Follow the link below to register and for event rules.

The culinary event will follow the “Classico” style of the World Pizza Championships. Anything goes, sauces, ingredients, but the pie must be cooked on the stone of the oven or a screen. No deep-dish or pan pizzas will be accepted.

A hotel block has been reserved at the Hilton Garden Inn, Northshore, Evanston, IL (1-847-475-6400). To get the group rate of $129/night, mention “Panino’s Pizza- 2016 National Pizza Competition” for the dates of June 12th-13th. If you require more or less dates, please let the desk know. They should honor the price for any time you need. Reservations will be taken until May 22nd or as long as the block of rooms last. If you have more questions please ask to speak with Aquelah Robinson, Sales Manager.

Click HERE to register for events!

The rules for the Culinary event are as follows:

Pizza Classico Rules

1.Contestants must make (1)12 inch or 14 inch round thin crust pizza with any toppings of your choice no limits.

Pizza must be baked on the oven Stone surface with or without a pizza screen NO pan or deep dish pizzas will be excepted.

There will be a strict time limit to assemble bake and get your pizza to presentation.

You will have 40 minutes set up/prep time in the staging area prior to begin prepping your pizza pie. You will then have 20 minutes to cook the pie. At the 1 hour mark, you will be told to present your pie to the judges, whether or not it is finished. No exceptions.

The oven will be a baker pride Y600 Brick Deck Oven set at 475 to 550° there will also be a Marra Forni wood-burning oven (gas assisted) set between 700 to 800°. Please specify which oven and temperature is needed, slots will be picked according to temperature.

We will provide screens ,pizza peels, tools along with Refrigeration. Please bring any specialized tools you will need,such as knives, digital thermometers or any other tools required for making/prepping your ingredients. Any questions about tools available please contact Gino Rago at ginor26@aol.com.

Dough must be made prior to competition day Monday, June 13th. Prep time will be available on Sunday, June 12th, times will be posted soon. Please contact Gino Rago for any special needs for prep at ginor26@aol.com

Prizes for events are as follows:

Culinary Prizes

1^st place-Trip to Italy/Awards

2^ndplace-$500 & Awards

3^rd place-$250 & Awards

Acrobatic Prizes

1^st place-$350

2^ndplace-$100

3^rd place-$50

Fastest Pizza Maker Prizes

1^st place- $150 & Award

2^ndplace-Award

3^rd place-Award

Largest Dough Stretch

1^st place-Award $150

2^ndplace-Award

3^rd place-Award

For more information contact Gino Rago at ginor26@aol.com or Brian Hernandez at brian@pmq.com.

Click HERE to register for events!

Competition and Events Sponsored by…

Brian Hernandez

The U.S. Pizza Team is a group of expert pizziaolos and pizza acrobats who compete in national and international pizza competitions. The team was founded in 2000 in collaboration with PMQ Pizza Magazine, the leading national trade publication for the pizza restaurant industry. Drawing pizza talent from across the United States, the U.S. Pizza Team promotes camaraderie through sportsmanship and team work throughout the world.