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The Hot Slice Podcast was live at Pizza Expo Columbus. We had an amazing time with the pizza community at the show. For the next few weeks of The Hot Slice Podcast, we will bring you conversations with pizza people from high above the show floor.  
Fresh off the stage of their keynote address, brothers Scott, Steve, Mark and Dave, along with some their team, joined us in the studio to talk about what has made Columbus, Ohio-based Flyers Pizza & Subs a legacy pizza company. As the 10-unit independent pizza business celebrates 50 years, the brothers spotlight their team. They also detail how their employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) will carry them into the future. Listen to the team talk about what their employment at Flyers means to them.  
Brittany Saxton, owner of 600 Downtown in Bellefontaine, Ohio, shares how her pizzeria has grown by combining community-based marketing with multiple revenue streams. She explains how bold local campaigns help attract destination traffic and support the broader downtown economy, while the business has expanded beyond dine-in service into carryout, catering, and two event venues. She also highlights the importance of training, operational structure, and team culture in keeping quality consistent and sustaining growth. 
Join us for the Pizza Expo Columbus Special, Part 2 next week.

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Listen to 2026 Crowned World Pizza Champion Carmela Williams of Antonio’s Italian Ristorante in Elkhart, Indiana, on The Hot Slice Podcast with Pizza Today
 How do you win a world pizza championship with a pie you’d never fully made before? On this episode of The Hot Slice, presented by Pizza Today, we sit down with Carmela Williams of Antonio’s Italian Ristorante in Elkhart, Indiana, fresh off her world champion title in the Americana division at the Caputo Cup in Naples, Italy.
It was Carmela’s first time competing internationally, and almost nothing went according to plan. Airport officials confiscated her ingredients. Her hotel had no prep space or refrigeration. The competition ovens swung wildly from 320 to nearly 600 degrees. So, she improvised, blending mozzarella with scamorza she’d never worked with and leaning on instincts sharpened by her restaurant’s 70-year-old Blodgett ovens.
Here’s what you’ll take away:
How she built a winning pizza on the fly under real pressure 
 Dough and cheese decisions that held up when conditions didn’t 
 Why her family legacy (father Paul and sister Gemma are also world champions) shaped her competitive mindset 
 With 14 years in the industry, Carmela also breaks down the operational philosophy behind Antonio’s: open four days a week, no reservations, first-come, first-served. It’s a candid look at craft, grit, and running a pizzeria your way.
Show Notes:
 Check out a fun look at her competition attempt: https://www.instagram.com/p/DZx3TUiJQ4J/
Follow Antonio’s Italian Ristorante at  https://www.antoniositalian.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/antoniositalianelkhart/

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Listen to Brian Rock, Co-Founder and COO of Doughnate Pizza, on The Hot Slice Podcast with Pizza Today
When a powerful derecho tore through northwest Indiana on Aug. 12 and knocked out power to more than 600,000 people, Brian Rock didn't wait for the lights to come back on. He went 14 days without power himself. Still, the co-founder and COO of Doughnate Pizza, a 100% volunteer-driven nonprofit, rallied his network and hit the streets. Over 16 days, his team served more than 6,000 meals, and on their biggest day they served 1,000! In this episode, we sit down with Brian to talk about how partnerships with Chicago staple Aurelio's Pizza and World Central Kitchen made it all possible, and why he sees pizza as one of the best tools around for doing good in your community. 🍕
Here's What Brian Gets Into:
The storm that sparked it all: How the derecho left communities like Lake Station without power for weeks, and why Brian's first call went to the county's emergency management team to find out where help was needed most
How to serve 1,000 meals in a day: Leaning on Aurelio's conveyor line to turn out 75 to 150 pizzas daily, packing 100 pies into a Subaru and serving two slices, a salad, a piece of fruit and a water from a simple tent setup, all coordinated by cell phone
The Doughnate Pizza model: How the 100% volunteer-driven nonprofit has delivered more than 70,000 meals since 2022 by working out roughly 50% discounts with pizzerias instead of asking for free food, so every donated dollar goes straight to feeding people
Teaming up with World Central Kitchen: How years of outreach finally paid off when WCK brought Doughnate Pizza on as a restaurant partner during this deployment
From military vet to pizza for good: Brian's journey from his first pizza job at 14 to the military, slinging slices for 8,000 to 9,000 festivalgoers a day, serving 350 meals after a 2020 derecho in Iowa and teaching pizza classes to fellow veterans
Advice for operators who want to help: Why Brian says you should spend the $500 or $1,000 on dough, cheese and sauce, show up for your neighbors and trust that your community will give it back tenfold
Tune in to the full episode of The Hot Slice Podcast to hear it all!

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Sexton’s Pizza started in a trailer the size of a closet on Florida’s Gulf Coast a decade ago. Now, after building a multi-unit operation in Columbus, Ohio, the pizzeria is returning to where it all began.
In this episode, we sit down with co-founder Joey Sexton ahead of Pizza Expo Columbus to talk dough science, growth and what it means to come full circle. You’ll learn about:
Columbus-style Pizza: The square-cut, red-sauce, smoked-provolone tradition rooted in the city’s Flytown neighborhood.
Dough Evolution: How a deep dive into long-fermented New York-style dough transformed Sexton’s signature product.
Building a Commissary: Why centralizing dough production took three months to dial in but changed everything for consistency.
The Portnoy Effect: What happened in the 12 hours after an 8.1 review and how Sexton’s kept up with demand
Sexton’s Burger Bar: Why a smash burger with a lace edge earned its own concept instead of a spot on the pizza menu.
Return to Florida: Why opening a location in the state where Sexton’s started feels like closing the loop on a 10-year journey.
Tune in to the full episode of The Hot Slice Podcast to hear it all!

 Show Notes:
Sexton’s Pizza: sextonspizza.com
Pizza Expo Columbus: pizzaexpocolumbus.pizzatoday.com  
Pizzeria Operator Survey: survey.alchemer.com/s3/8906788/Pizza-Today-s-Pizzeria-Operator-Survey-2026  
Pizzeria Industry Excellence (PIE) Awards: pizzatoday.com/pie-awards

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Sarah and Daniel Correa never planned on becoming beverage innovators. But when opening a full bar wasn’t the right fit for their community, they got creative instead.
In this episode, we sit down with the Correas, owners of Fired Pizza in Stockton, California. What started as a mobile catering rig in 2018 grew into a food truck, then blossomed into a brick-and-mortar restaurant built on Neapolitan wood-fired pizza and a genre-bending beverage program that won them the 2025 Pizza Industry Excellence (PIE) Award for Best Beverage Menu.
Here’s what Sarah and Daniel get into:
Why they intentionally chose to operate on a beer and wine license instead of pursuing full liquor, and how that decision shaped their entire brand.
Crafting cocktails with agave wine and infused syrups that rival traditional spirits, without a drop of vodka or whiskey in sight.
How relationships forged with local breweries and wineries during COVID became the backbone of a rotating, story-driven beverage menu.
The strategy behind an eight-tap draft system built around community loyalty, plus the sorbet seltzer customers refuse to let go.
Pricing wine by the glass to build trust with guests and move volume instead of sitting on bottles.
Standing out in a market full of New York-style legacy pizzerias by committing fully to something different.
Show Notes: 
Fired Pizza: fired-pizza.com
Pizza Expo Columbus: pizzaexpocolumbus.pizzatoday.com  
Pizzeria Operator Survey: survey.alchemer.com/s3/8906788/Pizza-Today-s-Pizzeria-Operator-Survey-2026  
Pizzeria Industry Excellence (PIE) Awards: pizzatoday.com/pie-awards