Coronavirus costs Pittsburgh's Caliente chance to defend best pizza in America title

The best pizza in America might very well hail from Western Pennsylvania — but it just won’t have an official world championship title this year.

The spreading coronavirus will keep Nick Bogacz, owner of Pittsburgh-based Caliente Pizza & Draft House, and Chef Eric von Hansen from traveling to the World Pizza Championships in Parma, Italy — and defending Caliente’s best pizza in America title. Their flights to Italy were canceled by the airline.

“I think everyone is trying to be safe is what it comes down to,” Bogacz said. “We looked forward to this all year long. … It’s just unfortunate that we’re not going to be able to go.”

Bogacz and a team of 35 people on a World Pizza Championship team have attended the event since 2001, which draws 600 competitors from more than 30 countries. A team from Caliente started attending the event last year, when van Hansen brought home the top prize for best pizza in America.

According to Bogacz, event officials are considering postponing the event and moving it to another location in Italy. The nation has reported more than 2,500 coronavirus infections and 79 deaths as of Wednesday.

Official details were not available on the championship’s website and social media pages.

According to The New York Times, Italy has seen the largest outbreak of the coronavirus outside of Asia. On Tuesday, the death toll increased by 27 in one day, with 90% of infections located in the northern Italian regions of Veneto, Lombardy and Emilia Romagna — where Parma is located.

“It’s been nerve-wracking for my family,” Bogacz said. “There’s a personal side at home. You don’t want to come back and get people sick over having a good time.”

The restaurant still has other opportunities to compete, though.

The International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas is expected to continue as planned from March 31 to April 2, said show director Bill Oakley. The event draws up to 14,000 people from 45 countries.

“We certainly are adhering to the CDC guidelines,” Oakley said. “We will be bringing in additional handwashing stations. We will be providing masks as needed.”

There have been no reported cases of the coronavirus in Nevada, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. Four of the five states surrounding it, however, have reported cases: Utah (1), Arizona (2), California (45) and Oregon (2), according to a New York Times tracker.

Bogacz hopes to attend the Las Vegas event along with the upcoming Napoli Pizza Village Festival in Naples, Italy. Slated for May 29 through April 7, the event draws more than a million people and produces more than 100,000 baked pizzas.

The entire Caliente team plans to attend the Naples event, Bogacz said.

“We’re hoping everything will be OK,” he said. Naples is about 400 miles south of Parma.

As for the World Pizza Championships, Bogacz said officials are reimbursing competition fees and hotels are currently reimbursing bookings by 80%.

“It seems like it’s really spreading,” he said of the virus. “It sounds like it’s complete chaos.”