WILLIAMSPORT, Md. — A small pizza shop in Williamsport, Maryland, just took home some major awards from the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas.
The International Pizza Expo is a yearly event for everything pizza pie. Pizza pros from across the country and the world converged on Vegas in late March to learn, network and have fun.
One of those professionals was Kenneth MacFawn. He's the co-owner of Rad Pies and White Rabbit Gastropub in Williamsport, Maryland.
"Oh man, the Pizza Expo is amazing. I mean it's just the best pizza being handed out at every other booth, and it is literally all things pizza. Manufacturers, pizza ovens, to go containers, POS systems, classes, dough trick competitions, and of course the World Pizza Championship!" MacFawn said.
That's right. The World Pizza Championship. It's the largest pizza-making competition in the U.S. and perhaps the world. Pizzas are judged in four divisions: Traditional, Non-Traditional, Pan and Neapolitan/STG. The pies are judged based on crust, sauce, cheese and toppings, as well as overall taste and creativity. Bake and visual presentation also play a factor in judging.
MacFawn competed in this year's championship and won first place in the Pan Division.
"The pizza we won with is called "In Crust We Trust" and it is a pepperoni crust pizza. Please look it up and come out and have a slice. We are the first in the world to create and make this work of art," MacFawn said.
MacFawn explained why he believes the pizza took home the top prize. It has to do with the dough.
"We use a high hydration long fermented dough. So although it looks like a thick piece of pizza, it has so much air pockets that it is the lightest and best dough for your stomach to break down," MacFawn said.
Speaking of dough, for winning first place in the Pan division, MacFawn walked away with $4,000 in prize money, which he says was presented to him in the form of a big "Happy Gilmore-style" check. Besides the cash, he also got a trophy and bragging rights.
MacFawn and Rad Pies also placed 5th in the Traditional division, 11th in the Non-Traditional division and 3rd for Italian Sandwich.
Community reaction following the trip to Vegas has been overwhelmingly positive, according to MacFawn.
"We blew peoples minds. Including mine, my mom's, my high school principal, kids, everyone. Everyone has been super supportive and hopefully they see this as bringing something cool back to our home town. This is the first time that Maryland has had a World Champion Pizza," he said.
It's not the first time a pizza from the DMV has emerged victorious at the Pizza Expo, though. Andy's Pizza, with shops in Virginia and D.C., took home the top prize in last year's championship.
For MacFawn, he says the local competition helps him improve.
"I do understand that iron sharpens iron, and tough local competition always raises the bar. In Williamsport, local establishments are fantastic, but we really always want to push ourselves harder than anyone else ever could," MacFawn said.
For those surprised that the best pan pizza in the world comes from Williamsport, his response is simple: "Everything comes from somewhere."
As the winning pizza maker in the 2022 contest, MacFawn can't personally defend his title during the 2023 expo, but says Rad Pies will send a team to Vegas to try to go back-to-back with the best next year.
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