Extreme Pizza, has announced its honorable ranking on Restaurant Business magazine’s Future 50 list of emerging restaurant chains that are spreading their wings.  According to Restaurant Business, the companies on the Future 50 are “defying industry trends and are the fastest growing chains with an average sales growth of 25.4 percent over last year.”

Extreme Pizza ranked #22 out of a list of 50 restaurants that included well-known chains such as Salad Creations, Stir Crazy and Organic To Go. Despite a lackluster economy and numerous challenges, Extreme Pizza remains committed to growing its business and delivering the best possible product to its customers.

“Now more than ever as a company, we recognize the need to stay focused on our concept and remain true to our philosophy: Extreme. Not mainstream,” says Todd Parent, CEO of Extreme Pizza. “We continue to ensure the highest quality menu offering, exceptional customer service and a commitment to give back to the local communities that support all of our locations.”

Most recently, Extreme Pizza has opened a series of new locations in Northern California including Dublin, Newark, San Ramon and Folsom, with another 5 stores set to open before the end of the year. Guests at this casual quick restaurant can order at the counter, pick up their drinks and take a seat. The food is made fresh-to-order and served hot from the oven to the table. Home and office delivery is also available at all locations for everything on the menu, everyday of the week.

Founded in San Francisco in 1994,Extreme Pizza boasts 9 corporate locations and 32 nationwide franchises, as well as international

Less than eight years ago, Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza (ACFP) opened its first location in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, introducing its unique concept of authentic coal-burning ovens and "well done pizzas."  On July 14, ACFP's growth continued with the debut of its 19th location, the first in Orlando, at 8031 Turkey Lake Road, Suite 300 in Phillips Crossing.

Known for its high energy atmosphere, quality ingredients and signature menu items, ACFP was recently voted Best Pizza by The Miami Herald/Miami.com's "The Best of South Florida Survey."  The restaurant's 800-degree ovens burn anthracite, the 'cleanest' of coals, giving the pizza a unique "well done" taste and texture. ACFP's Orlando location will also feature its popular coal-oven-roasted chicken wings topped with grilled onions and signature Italian-style salad, as well as other Italian specialties.

Partners include Founder Anthony Bruno and Hall of Fame football legend Dan Marino. The expansion to West and Central Florida (ACFP restaurants opened earlier this year in Tampa and Clearwater) is in partnership with former Outback Steakhouse President Ben Novello.

"We've been targeting Orlando for quite some time and look forward to introducing our unique pizza experience to the area," said Novello.  The company is planning future openings throughout Florida and the Northeast.  The first ACFP outside Florida opened earlier this month in Las Vegas.

Little Caesar Enterprises, Inc. celebrated the opening of a new location in Providence as Little Caesars franchisee Gabi Bazzi opened his doors for business at 539 Smith St. last week  "Little Caesars is well known for its great value, quick service, and tremendous appeal to families," said Bazzi. "I am excited to offer a large, fresh, pepperoni pizza that's ready when my customers are, with no waiting or need to call ahead."

Before becoming a Little Caesars franchisee, Bazzi worked in Detroit for the publisher of a Detroit media outlet. "I felt it was time for a career change. The challenging economy motivated me to become more independent and take control of my family's future. Little Caesars is growing at a time when many other companies are not, and it is a great opportunity for me."

To maintain its continued growth, Little Caesars supports franchisees with strong processes and a proven system that includes: ongoing training and support, architectural services to help with store design and construction, preferred lenders to assist with financing, the ongoing research and development of new products, and effective marketing programs and support.

"I look forward to getting involved and supporting efforts that are important to the Providence community," Bazzi said.

Little Caesars Pizza founders Michael and Marian Ilitch opened their first restaurant in Garden City, Michigan, in 1959.

Synergy Restaurant Consultants retained for operations assessment by Uncle Joe's Pizzeria in Anchorage

While Joe White is pleased that his sales are up, a great place to be in this economy, he felt things could be much better.  And he felt like he was stuck in a rut and in need of a jump start and Synergy Consultants for his 16-year-old Pizzeria concept. 

Joe retained Synergy Restaurant Consultants to evaluate his entire four-unit operations via their top-down operations Assessment. The Operations Assessment was performed over a recent five-day period, which included visits to each of the restaurant locations, the Central Production Kitchen, and spending time with Joe and his management team to analysis and assess their accountabilities, challenges and opportunities. 

"The Synergy team evaluated every aspect of our operation, from product procurement, preparation, service both in the restaurant as well as take-out and delivery, and our operations and financial structure," explains Joe.  "We also spent a great deal of time discussing marketing and sales building strategies that will have a an immediate, positive impact on our sale and bottom line profits.  Prior to their departure,  they compiled a list of recommendations for positive change, 'low hanging fruit', gleaned from the Operations Assessment, that we will begin working on as soon as possible."

In addition to observing operations, Synergy spent a great deal of time assessing menu selections for flavor, presentation, perceived value and consistency in preparation from location to location.  Furthermore, they spent several hours perusing the competition, gathering information on competitive price comparison, quality evaluations and similarities in an effort to make recommendations that will differentiate Uncle Joe's Pizzeria from the rest of the pizza 'pack'.