Pizzeria Owners Make the Move From Brick-and-Mortar to Food Truck

Another new pizza option has hit the streets.

The Burning Oven owners Philippe Agasse and his wife, Stephanie, never expected pizza to reshape their lives, but that’s exactly what happened. Thirteen years ago, the couple and their four children left Toulouse in southwestern France for what was supposed to be a one-year adventure in Miami. Having recently stepped away from the family construction business, they were searching for a new direction. “We wanted to take a gap year, so we moved to Miami and found a business opportunity there, working in real estate and property management,” recalls Agasse. “The idea was to spend one year, and we’re still here.”

After four years in Miami, the family wanted to see another side of the country. In 2016, they ventured west to Colorado. Although no one in the family had ever been in the restaurant business, dining out was a favorite pastime. “We were always asking, ‘What are we doing tonight?’ Oh, let’s go out for dinner,” recalls Agasse. With so many fond memories built around dining out, Philippe began considering the restaurant business. “We had this idea of having a restaurant, and more specifically, a pizzeria, for a long time,” he says.

Once in Colorado, Agasse began exploring opportunities. “I checked online and discovered several businesses for sale, and a pizzeria was our first option. It also checked all the boxes for our immigration status. It would allow us to get an investor visa and be able to stay and work, and have the kids at school,” he explains.

That year, the Agasses took the plunge and purchased their first restaurant, Guido’s Pizza located just off I-70 in Genesee. Although it was their first time running a restaurant, they approached it with the same determination that had guided their family’s successful business in France. “We kept the existing crew and learned on the spot,” says Agasse. With no professional pizza-making experience, Philippe and his wife jumped in, mastering every step of the process. “One day, somebody doesn’t show up. And okay, so it’s me making pizza,” he recalls.

What began as a small takeout spot soon gained momentum. “We improved it and made it a bigger place, expanding it to around seventy to eighty seats,” Agasse says. Running the restaurant came with challenges, namely staffing, as many employees were high school and college students who came and went. Yet, for the Agasses, the joy of being part of a community, getting to know returning customers, and watching their restaurant thrive far outweighed the struggles. “Owning a restaurant is a crazy life,” Agasse admits. “But the social connection and daily interactions made it all worth it.”

After seven years of running Guido’s Pizza, the Agasses started imagining a new chapter. In the summer of 2024, the long hours and stress of restaurant ownership weighed heavily. “At some point, we started thinking about a food truck as a way to have more freedom and a little bit less stress,” says Agasse. At first, “Our idea was to run both at the same time and see how everything goes. Then, we got this opportunity to sell the restaurant, and I thought, ‘Okay, let’s go 100 percent in on the food truck.'”

In June, they officially handed over the keys to Guido’s Pizza and shifted all their energy toward their new venture: the Burning Oven food. They had already placed a deposit for a custom-built food truck, complete with a massive oven shipped from New Jersey and installed in Florida. By late July, they drove the finished truck across the country to Colorado, ready to begin again.

Labor Day weekend marked the truck’s official debut. “It was fantastic. We were at Lone Tree Brewing Company. A lot of former customers from the restaurant, former employees, and everybody wanted to see us. It was super cool,” says Agasse. As for the pizza itself, he describes it as “something in between New York style and Neapolitan style.” With years of pizza-making experience now under their belts, the Agasses make everything from scratch, and the dough typically undergoes a 48-hour proofing process.

The Burning Oven’s menu features appetizers like garlic knots, caprese skewers and Caesar salad, but pizza is the main attraction. There are a variety of 12-inch pies available, including olive oil-based options such as the Parma with mozzarella, prosciutto, arugula and balsamic glaze; and the Bologna with mozzarella, mortadella, burrata and fresh basil. Pies with a red sauce base include classics like cheese, margherita and pepperoni. The most popular is the Palermo topped with spicy sopressata and fresh mozzarella. “It’s so good,” says Agasse.

As the Burning Oven nears the end of its first full month of service, the Agasses are navigating a new set of challenges. “There’s a lot of competition. It’s a new experience, a new challenge. Trying to build a network and find places to work is difficult. But it’s also kind of exciting,” says Agasse.

For the family, pizza is more than just food. “If you think about it, we’ve been traveling around the world, and pizza is one of the few things that you can find in every country. Eating pizza makes you feel good. It’s universal,” Agasse notes. “My wife and I are both pizza freaks.”

He concludes, “We moved to the U.S. thirteen years ago with four kids, not knowing what the future would be, and we have been able to make our dreams come true. We might be an example that the American dream is still possible.”

For more information about the Burning Oven, including its schedule, visit theburningoven.com or follow it on Instagram @theburningovenpizza.