Pizza has grown into a mainstay of American culture, both at the dinner table and in pop culture.
In the 1980’s the Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles were well known for their affinity for a slice, and on March 28th, 2010, an episode of Breaking Bad became instantly iconic as Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston, threw a pizza in frustration, with it landing on the roof of his garage.
This connection between pizza and pop culture will be on full display at the newest restaurant coming to Two Rivers, Pop Start Pizza.
The restaurant is owned and operated by Justin Ulness and Nathan Hulsey, who tells SeehaferNews.com that he has plenty of food memories surrounding pizza.
“Friday nights was a frozen pizza and watching a movie with my mom and sister,” Hulsey explained. “It’s comfort…it’s pop culture, and it’s video games with your buddies down in the basement.”
The duo plan on decorating the interior of the former Pizza Garden with subtle and not-so-subtle nods to pop culture, including giving the hallway toward the bathroom the vibe of walking into an arcade, which was found in plenty of pizzerias back in the day.
“We’re designing the space so that it’s, you know, fun and family friendly and, you know, kind of a little bit communal seating, if you will,” Ulness noted. “But we also want to set the space so that we can also host private events. We hope to do catering outside of this as well.”
Ulness and Hulsey both have a history in the culinary world, specifically in fine dining, which has allowed them to perfect the style of pizza they want to bring to the Lakeshore, which is known as Neapolitan.
“Neapolitan is cooked specifically in this type of domed oven,” Hulsey explained. “The dough proofs for two days. So it’s a long fermentation time. And then when you make it, it’s a very fast cooking time. So it’s in the oven, gets to between 850 and a thousand degrees.”
The duo is excited to give diners the traditional tastes they know and love, pepperoni, sausage, cheese, etc, but also an opportunity to try some more unique toppings.
“The elegant ingredients, if you will, the prosciutto is the very you know, the fresh mozzarella is the you know, the the basil, the very Italian ingredients,” Ulness revealed. “So that is going to be very much a part of our soul and our core.”
The element of pop culture will also be found on their menu, as Ulness and Hulsey said they plan on naming their pizzas things like “The Spicoli”, in reference to Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and the Kevin McCalister, which would be a cheese pizza like Macauly Culkin’s character ordered in Home Alone.
Ulness said some of the pop culture nods will be very obvious, like those pizzas, but others will be deep cuts that only a few people may recognize.
He said that is all part of the allure they are looking to build.
Pop Start Pizza is hoping to open in late Spring, but as the guys said, “We don’t want to put dates on anything because we don’t want to disappoint, but we are eager to open.”
