Pizza palace on wheels
Bahler Street, the mobile pizza idea of Park Street Pizza owners Rocky and Courtney Shanower, brings the experience of enjoying wood-fired pizza to your private venue. Pictured are Eddie Shanower, left and Rocky Shanower.
Rocky and Courtney Shanower share a love of their first home, books, quality pizza and, most importantly, each other. Now the owners of Park Street Pizza are hitting the road to spread the love at special events and festivals with Bahler Street, a “pizza palace” on wheels featuring inventive pizzas named after the couple’s literary favorites.
“Several years ago, we started offering wood-fired pizzas at local farmers markets. Courtney developed a sourdough crust, and we baked it directly on the stone with a wood-burning oven.”
The pizzas were a hit. The couple, who founded Park Street Pizza in 2003 when they were both just 22 years old, decided they did not want their mobile business to emulate their restaurant. Instead, they created a sister concept that embraced many of the same components as Park Street Pizza: locally sourced fresh ingredients, high-quality food, a commitment to service and community involvement.
The twist is using Courtney Shanower’s unique sourdough crust as a base for imaginative toppings and naming their creations after the many books that filled their beloved first home, which was located on Sugarcreek’s Bahler Street.
One of the most popular pizzas is James and the Giant Peach, featuring fig preserves, mozzarella, grilled peaches, Applewood smoked bacon and microgreens. Traditionalists will enjoy Umbertina, topped with fresh mozzarella and a hand-cut local pepperoni. Carnivores and vegetarians alike can enjoy The Charlotte, loaded with vegan Italian sausage, garlic, chiles, crushed tomato sauce, mozzarella and microgreens.
Also available are fresh salads and hors d’oeuvres, which are especially popular for cocktail hours at weddings, rehearsal dinners, graduation parties, retirement parties and corporate events. Wood-grilled shrimp with charred lemon, bacon-wrapped dates and charcuterie boards are big hits.
Pizzas are customizable for private events.
“We can do weddings for up to 250 people,” Shanower said, adding he can often cater events with a few weeks’ notice but already has some bookings for 2019. “We bring cups, plates and napkins. Everything we use is earth-friendly, biodegradable and disposable. We can bring drinks. We make it stress-free for hosts. We set up our truck and serving tables on site, and the space is immediately transported into a rustic pizza kitchen.”
Bahler Street is more unique than a standard food truck because of its design.
“The oven is on the inside of the truck, and we cook from the outside so it creates an amazing experience for guests and makes for a really unique wedding, rehearsal dinner or other special event,” Shanower said. “Over the last couple of years, people have really been interested in having us do their weddings.”
The Shanowers credit much of their success to their partnerships with local farmers markets, especially Tuscarawas Valley Farmers Market in Dover, where they began offering their sourdough pizza creations. They continue to sell pizza there and source many ingredients from the vendors. They also are grateful to Superior Clay, which donated ovens to get them started, and also built and installed the oven on the truck.
The couple, who have succeeded in offering a healthier and fresher spin on pizza at Park Street Pizza and Bahler Street, had minimal restaurant experience when they opened their first venture. Rocky Shanower began working in pizza at age 16 but never managed one until he and his wife launched Park Street Pizza.
What works for Bahler Street, according to the website, is offering quality unique food. “We want it to be a novel experience — one that is comforting and exciting, safe and surprising, intimate and adventurous — just like the home that inspired it,” Shanower said.
For more information about booking Bahler Street for your special event visit BahlerStreet.com or call 330-432-3799.