Pizza Today named Via 313 the 2020 Pizzeria of the Year in its most recent issue.
The magazine picked Via 313 because the owners have stayed humble while building a multi-million dollar pizza empire in Austin during the past 9 years. Brothers Brandon and Zane Hunt had more than $12 million worth of annual sales to become one of the most popular pizzerias in the nation.
The two Motor City natives wanted to recreate the pizza they enjoyed as kids. The Hunts first started serving Detroit-style pizza at a food trailer in downtown Austin in 2011. Since then, Via 313 has grown to include three sit-down restaurants and two trailers.
“We just serve good pizza and try to take care of people,” said Zane.
Aside from having good food, the brothers credit part of their business's success to focusing on customers and extending their hospitality to everyone they work with.
"We have to be there for everyone. It takes a community to support everything," said Brandon.
That attitude is what's helping the local pizza chain get through the pandemic as other restaurants are starting to shut down. The brothers closed the Via 313 dining rooms in March and switched to curbside pick-up only at its brick and mortar locations.
"Better Living Through Pizza is more than just a motto at Via 313. It means looking out for each other. In good times and bad it serves as a guiding principle intended to help us make sure that everything we do betters the lives of the people that trust us," the owners wrote on Facebook to explain their decision to shift to pick-up.
The customers keep coming, according to the Hunts, who say that they've managed to make their pick-up model work for now.
“It’s sustainable like this for the time being but this isn’t what we set out to do. Yes, we can serve a lot of the pizzas like this, but the hospitality piece is lost for the most part," Zane said.
Photo: Getty Images