Flicker to a flame
Once upon a time, a small little fire in a small little oven in a small little town in upstate NY gave birth to an idea of sharing the intimate experience of old-fashioned artesian cooking. A cob (clay) oven stood in the corner of the farm as locals passed on their way to school and work. Every Friday morning the farmer and his apprentices would open bags of organic wheat and stone grind the berries for the afternoon bread baking. The fire keeper would tend to the fire throughout the day until the dough was ready to be placed inside the oven then we would bake 30+ loaves to dispense to the community.
After dark, the apprentices would fire up the oven to make their own personal pizzas. Friends would join them, captivated by learning how to toss pizza dough in the air, stretching it into a perfect circle. They would load on freshly picked produce from the farm as toppings. We became aware of the graceful presence that a wood fired oven has and it’s lasting impression of an experience they will never forget. This was the match that lit the Fire Within.
These farm gatherings, appreciation for community combined with our entrepreneurial spirit got our wheels turning and inspired us to “take this show on the road.”
During our first year of operations, we catered private events and festivals while perfecting our craft. Calls started coming in asking what we were doing and how we were doing it. We began developing our custom mobile pizza oven designs based on practical experiences. We adapted our designs based on our customers feedback.
We quickly learned what to do and what we would have done differently. So we documented our own experiences in detail and complied them into a business plan known today as “Rolling In The Dough.” Since then, we’ve developed an extensive hands-on training program to help others get rolling. “Give a man a fish feed him for a day…”
Today, Fire Within has helped more than 100 individuals, couples and top wood fired chefs launch their own catering business. We feel fortunate to be a part of a true grass-roots movement that is changing the way people relate to food and the community around them.
Warmly, Joseph Pergolizzi – Founder and head fire starter
