After years of honing his pizza prowess at local St. Pete establishments such as Tour de Pizza and Wood Fired, lifelong St. Pete resident Adam Duff, his brother Andrew, and wife Kelley, recently opened the doors to their new restaurant, Pizza Box, located at 923 Central Ave in Downtown St. Pete’s EDGE District. Everything the eatery cooks is made in their 2,000 lb. white clay oven, including wood fired pizzas, meatballs, and vegetables. “We don’t cook using any deep friers, flat top grills, propane, or electricity,” boasts Adam. And unlike most pizzerias, where the pizza oven is tucked away in the back of the restaurant, the oven at Pizza Box is located directly to the left of the front door, allowing whoever is cooking the pizza to interact with the customers. “It’s a great feeling to be able to communicate with as many people as possible. You can never have too many friends,” says Adam.

Adam and Andrew grew up in Shore Acres, 10 minutes away from Pizza Box. After taking over a lawn care business in 2006, Adam decided to study horticulture through the University of Florida. For now, Pizza Box is trying to stay as local as possible with their ingredients, but eventually Adam hopes to use his knowledge of garden cultivation to grow the pizza toppings himself. “The dream would be to have a garden on the roof of Pizza Box. We don't need to buy herbs from other places. We can grow them locally,” he says.