Hampton couple turned passion for pizza into Caliente empire

Nick Bogacz is happiest when he’s wearing his official work uniform: a black T-shirt covered in flour.

“This is my passion,” says the Hampton resident, who runs Caliente Pizza & Draft House with his wife, Angie.

Since 2012, the couple has turned one, small shop into a Pittsburgh pizza empire.

During his senior year at Pine-Richland High School, Nick landed a job as a delivery driver for Pizza Outlet on Route 8. Eventually, he worked his way into the kitchen, making pies and learning the tricks of the trade. In his five years with the company, he saw the chain grow from 46 to 127 stores.

While working several other jobs, he dreamed of having his own franchise specializing in gourmet pizzas and brews.

Across the busy road, Angie, a student at Hampton High School, was bartending at Bob’s Wings & Six Packs, one of the first establishments in Pittsburgh to sell craft beer.

When the pair met, it was love at first bite.

Twenty years later, the Bogaczs have two kids, five Caliente locations, 200 employees and numerous awards, including World Championship titles from the International Pizza Expo held annually in Las Vegas. In April, Nick and Caliente Chef Eric Von Hansen will travel to Parma, Italy, to compete in the Pizza World Championship, the planet’s largest pizza-making contest. Tony Gemignani, a 13-time World Pizza Champion, personally asked them to join his all-star team.

Caliente’s rise in the culinary world started with an unassuming storefront in Bloomfield, which was already named Caliente. With the help of family members who happily served as taste-testers, the Bogaczs spent months perfecting their recipes and stocking their coolers with rare beers from across the country.

Their grand opening coincided with Bloomfield’s Little Italy Days and Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week. Customer response from both foodies and beer geeks was instantaneous and enthusiastic. Because business was so red-hot, they decided to stick with the original name.

They brought a gourmet chef on board (Von Hansen spent years in the kitchen at Lucca Ristorante in Oakland) and local suds makers such as Church Brew Works, East End Brewing and Strange Roots Experimental Ales and began collaborating on special releases.

Two years after their Bloomfield debut, the Bogaczs opened a second location, in Hampton, in the former Bob’s Wings & Six Pack shop (Angie’s favorite Mardi Gras wing sauce is still on the Caliente menu). Spots in Mt. Lebanon, Aspinwall and Monroeville soon followed.

Nick, who recently wrote a book on finding success in the pizza industry, says they’re on the hunt for a sixth shop.

Each location boasts the trademark Caliente décor — black walls and ceilings, exposed brick, metal beer signs and dark woodwork — but carries its own distinct personality.

“We use the best ingredients you can buy,” Angie says. “And we love what we do.”