Pizza is one of the most popular and beloved foods worldwide, regardless of age. In Greece, many businesses in the food service sector specialize in Italian cuisine, while others include pizzas on their menu, serving them either as a snack, brunch, or main course.

So whether you are starting a new food service business or upgrading your existing equipment, choosing the right professional pizza oven is an important matter, as it is the heart of every professional Italian kitchen or pizza-making workshop and the first step to attracting more customers.

In the following buying guide, we will examine the four key elements you should take into account when looking for a professional pizza oven. From the type of oven and technical specifications to your budget and your needs, we will help you choose the right one for your business, one that will bring the Italian flavor to your dishes and meet your customers' high expectations.

1. Production per hour

What you need to keep in mind is the fast service of your customers, without investing too much money in an oven that exceeds your needs. Therefore, the main selection criterion is the performance of the oven during peak hours.

To calculate how many pizzas an oven produces per hour, you need to know how long it takes to bake a pizza and its capacity (in pizzas). So, if an oven bakes a pizza in 5 minutes and can hold 10 pizzas, then in one hour it can bake approximately 120 pizzas, as derived from the following mathematical operation.

2. Power Supply

Power supply refers, on the one hand, to the installations in your business’s kitchen and on the other hand to how often you operate the oven. 

Specifically, electric pizza ovens can be placed anywhere in the kitchen, as they are relatively small in size. They are ideal for canteens and small shops, where pizza is not the main dish on the menu. They are easier to handle and their initial cost is significantly lower than gas ovens. Usually, they feature a control system that allows temperature adjustment at different points of the oven, so you can prepare pizzas with different baking preferences.

Gas pizza ovens are aimed at businesses that want to invest in pizza and have a larger customer base. They can reach very high temperatures, usually above 427°C. The baking result is more traditional, as they bake the pizza evenly, ensuring a crispy crust.

Professional wood-fired pizza ovens are aimed mainly at pizzerias. They are the most traditional way of baking pizza, as the wood gives the food a distinctive aroma and flavor. Of course, as the wood burns, its condition should be checked at regular intervals so that the fire in the wood-fired oven remains strong. 

Usually, they feature smoke extraction systems that ensure proper ventilation and the removal of smoke from the space, while they have a more attractive appearance, which gives the space an authentic character.

Finally, pizza ovens that operate on natural gas are popular in the food service industry, due to their ability to produce high temperatures (above 370°C) and even baking. They are usually made of stainless steel, a material that withstands high temperatures and continuous use. Many of these ovens feature pizza baking stones, which help create the perfect base and the characteristic crispy bottom of the pizza. They are suitable for use in food service establishments with high daily pizza production.

3. Available space

After calculating how many pizzas you will serve per day, you need to think about where to place the oven. The first thing you need to do is measure the free space in your kitchen, so you know approximately what dimensions it should have and which type of oven you should choose.

Convection pizza oven

Convection pizza ovens are electric appliances intended for small businesses and snack bars that serve dishes other than pizza as well. They require 15-20 minutes of preheating and 5-6 minutes to bake a pizza. 

Like all ovens, they lose heat when the door is opened, but they are specially designed to minimize this loss. They are the most economical pizza ovens, since their price starts at just over €100 and they have relatively low energy consumption, as they bake pizzas by circulating hot air.

Brick Oven Pizza Oven

Brick oven pizza ovens (deck ovens) are intended for pizzerias and for businesses that produce more than 60-70 pizzas per day. It takes 60 minutes to preheat the oven and 6-8 minutes for each pizza. This is the closest thing to a traditional built-in brick pizza oven, as they come very close to the quality of pizza baking. How do they achieve this? They have a porous surface at the base, either stone or ceramic, which absorbs moisture. The result is a crispy pizza without burnt sides. 

There are models powered by electricity as well as by liquefied petroleum gas. The fact that one oven is placed on top of another (hence the name Deck) makes this type of pizza oven the ideal solution for businesses that do not have much usable space in their kitchen. Also, if you plan to increase production in the future due to greater demand, it is the best choice since you can simply buy an additional oven and place it above the others. The different levels of these ovens give you the ability to bake pizzas that require different baking times at the same time (e.g. pizzas with thin and thick dough, or 25 and 40 cm pizzas). 

One of the disadvantages of the brick oven is that the pizzas being baked need to be monitored so that they bake evenly. As a result, they require more specialized staff who will turn them quickly and safely, so that there is no significant heat loss.

Traditional Pizza Oven

Traditional pizza ovens (brick ovens) are intended mainly for pizzerias. They require 45-60 minutes of preheating and just 2-5 minutes to bake a pizza. They operate either by burning wood or with liquefied petroleum gas. They do not have a door; however, if the flame is maintained properly, they have almost zero heat loss between baking cycles. 

Despite their high initial cost, they are a magnet for customers, since the aesthetic appeal they provide is synonymous with traditional pizza and the baking result never disappoints. Therefore, for a pizzeria, whose kitchen also serves as the storefront display, the traditional masonry oven is a must. 

Because tradition sidelines technology and its conveniences, an experienced cook is needed to operate the oven so that you can make the most of the oven's benefits.

Tunnel pizza oven

The tunnel pizza ovens (conveyor ovens) are suitable for restaurant chains, as well as for pizzerias with huge production. They need only 10-15 minutes of preheating and 4-5 minutes to bake a pizza. They are powered by LPG or electricity. 

Besides their speed, a major advantage is that they do not require an experienced operator, since they are very easy to use and offer baking with consistency and uniformity. Finally, they are the only pizza oven that has zero heat loss between bakes.

The drawbacks of these ovens are that they require space in the kitchen, since they are bulky appliances, and that they do not allow simultaneous baking of different pizza "styles".

4. Placement 

The choice between a countertop and a floor-standing pizza oven depends on your needs and preferences. Since both types have their advantages and disadvantages, the choice depends on the space, the way it will be used, and your budget. 

The countertop pizza oven is easier to store, as it can be placed on a table and is suitable for kitchens with less available space. Usually, it is more affordable in terms of price. On the other hand, it has limited capacity and capabilities compared to a floor-standing pizza oven, while it may limit the baking method for large-scale pizza production.

The floor-standing pizza oven has greater capacity and power, allowing a large quantity of pizzas to be baked at the same time, while offering better baking, since it has more temperature and time adjustment options. Its disadvantages are that it has larger dimensions and is heavier, therefore it requires more space and is more difficult to store. Finally, it is comparatively more expensive than the countertop oven.

In summary...

A professional pizza oven is an essential tool for your business kitchen, and choosing one is not always an easy task, as you need to take into account many factors that will lead you to the most suitable choice, without investing excessive money in an oven that exceeds your needs. 

It is important not to forget the tools that will complement the oven, such as pizza peels, which can elevate the final result. After all, don’t forget that pizza has a broad and demanding audience, whose needs, if met, automatically turn them into a customer and regular visitor of your store.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the best commercial pizza oven?

Commercial pizza ovens are designed to bake high-quality pizza quickly. The best oven is the one that combines the power, capacity, and functionality you need for proper service, regardless of customer demand.

2. What is the right capacity of a commercial oven? 

Ask about the oven’s capacity in terms of the number of trays. Take into account your production volume and space limitations to ensure that the oven’s capacity meets your needs.

3. Is there a difference between an electric pizza oven and a gas oven?

The general consensus is that gas pizza ovens offer a more traditional result, while electric ovens require less training to use and are more energy efficient.

4. Can you cook other foods in a pizza oven?

Yes, because pizza ovens are similar to conventional ovens. Roasted meat, fish, pies, and baked goods can be cooked perfectly in a pizza oven, as they are extremely versatile. However, if you are also interested in looking for other types of ovens to "staff" your restaurant kitchen, you can find everything you need in this buying guide for commercial ovens.

5. Can a pizza oven reach very high temperatures?

Yes, although it depends on the pizza recipe. High temperature is essential for quickly cooking pizza, and some commercial pizza ovens can reach temperatures above 600°C during baking. With a little practice and testing, you will find the perfect combination of heat and cooking times.

6. If I have an Italian restaurant or pizzeria, should I choose a brick oven or a traditional built-in oven, and why?

If you do not have enough space in your kitchen to fit a traditional oven, choose a brick oven. If the kitchen is also a showcase for your business, invest in a traditional oven that will attract attention.

7. Should I choose a countertop or floor-standing oven, and why?

The right choice depends on your business needs and habits. If you have limited space and daily pizza production is relatively small, a countertop oven may be the best choice. However, if you need more capacity and cooking flexibility, a floor-standing pizza oven may be the best choice.

8. What is the difference between a single, double, and triple oven?

Single, double, and triple pizza ovens usually refer to the number of baking chambers they have. This number determines the oven’s capacity and its ability to bake more pizzas at the same time with different temperatures and baking times. 

A single pizza oven has one baking chamber. This means it can bake only one pizza at a time. It is ideal for small businesses that do not have a large pizza production volume. A double pizza oven has two chambers, usually with separate temperature controls. This allows you to bake two pizzas at the same time, each with its own temperature settings. It is more versatile than the single oven and is the most in-demand on the market. Finally, the triple pizza oven has three chambers, usually with separate temperature controls. It is suitable for businesses with high pizza demand that need to produce large volumes in a short period of time.

Of course, the choice between a single, double, and triple pizza oven depends on the needs and production of your business.