FRANCO PEPE RECEIVES TWO KNIVES AT THE BEST CHEF AWARDS 2024 AND BECOMES THE FIRST PIZZAIOLO TO RECEIVE THIS RECOGNITION
Dubai, 6 November 2024. Franco Pepe, Caiazzo’s acclaimed maestro pizzaiolo, has been honored at The Best Chef Awards 2024 with 2 Knives, marking a milestone in his career and highlighting his excellence in international gastronomy as he becomes the first and only pizzaiolo to receive this recognition.
Franco Pepe is one of the most outstanding personalities in the field of pizza. He has traveled a path full of achievements, combining tradition and avant-garde in his work. Heir to a passion passed down from generation to generation, his training began alongside his father, Stefano, which allowed him to develop a unique sensitivity towards pizza making.
With the experience of two generations, on 14 October 2012, he opened Pepe in Grani, a project that has revolutionized the way of understanding and enjoying pizza, by integrating research, hospitality and a deep connection with the territory of Alto Casertano and its inhabitants. Pepe in Grani has also obtained the highest score in the Pizzerie d’ Italia 2025 guide by Gambero Rosso. Today, the Pepe in Grani team is made up of around 50 people, demonstrating the evolution of the individual role of the pizzaiolo into an ambitious haute cuisine proposal.
‘I am excited because this is a historic milestone, an important recognition, which does not come from the world of pizza, but from the gastronomic community. From today we have a great responsibility: the haute cuisine recognizes us» said Franco Pepe, very excited about this recognition.
With this new award, Franco Pepe continues to strengthen its position as a leader in the world of pizza and haute cuisine, uniting chefs and food lovers from all over the world. His unwavering commitment to quality, innovation and respect for the territory continues to set an inspiring path for future generations of pizza makers and chefs. The Best Chef Awards reaffirms with this recognition its mission to highlight visionaries who elevate their disciplines, and in Franco Pepe he has found a model of dedication, excellence and pride in his territory that has taken his pizzas to a new level in world gastronomy.
About Franco Pepe
Franco Pepe is considered the most famous Italian pizzaiolo in the world. Dough is in his DNA. His grandfather was a baker, his father was a pizzaiolo, and he and his brothers continued in the family business. Famous for his unique dough, and for his dedication to elevating the art of pizza making, his popularity began with an article by Jonathan Gold, a Pulitzer Prize-winning gastronome who wrote in the American edition of Food & Wine magazine: «I’ve probably had the best pizza in the world from Franco Pepe». From then on, he became the most voted pizzaiolo in Phaidon’s «Where to Eat Pizza» guide, in which chefs indicate their favourite places to eat in the world. Franco Pepe stars in one of the episodes of the Netflix series Chef’s Table: Pizza and has been named Ambassador of the Mediterranean Diet Worldwide, Ambassador of Caiazzo Worldwide, Ambassador of Taste and Ambassador of Territory. He has also been recognised as Pizzaiolo of the Year by «Food and Travel», «Pizza Awards Italia», The Best Pizza Chef Awards 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024, and Master of the Art and Craft of Pizza by the «Scuola Internazionale di Cucina italiana ALMA», among others.
About Pepe in Grani
Pepe in Grani, a pizzeria located in Caiazzo, a small town of 5000 inhabitants a few kilometers from the province of Caserta, is the place where Franco Pepe welcomes 400 customers and prepares 800 pizzas a day. Pepe in Grani’s project is based on the research and selection of raw materials and the human factor, where he experiments and integrates among other themes and methods: the frying technique, the electric oven, the structure of the equipment and the scientific contribution. His pizza is based on innovation, but starts from tradition. He improves the dough with a special blend of flours produced especially for him, a key part of his production. He is meticulous in his selection of local ingredients. His aim is to share with the world, through his pizza, the flavors and stories of his territory.
About The Best Chef Awards
The Best Chef Awards is a vibrant global community of food lovers, created to celebrate the most talented chefs redefining the culinary experience around the world. Founded in 2015 by Polish neuroscientist Joanna Slusarczyk and Italian gastronome Cristian Gadau, this unique platform seeks to highlight the people behind gastronomic creations and their process, inspiring new generations. Since 2017, The Best Chef has organised an annual awards ceremony that showcases a selection of outstanding chefs and awards special prizes, celebrating creativity, sustainability, and social impact in the kitchen. Through educational initiatives such as Food Meets Science and Area Talks, The Best Chef also encourages learning and discussion, becoming a space where culinary experiences and knowledge are shared across cultures and generations, to inspire future leaders in the world of haute cuisine.
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