New York City’s famed pizza concept, Artichoke Basille’s Pizza, will be expanding its footprint in Northern California with the sale of additional units in the area. The brand’s Berkeley, CA store has been serving the acclaimed NY slices the West since 2013, and the franchisee, Jim Trevor, recently signed a multi-unit deal to expand Artichoke Basille’s Pizza to the Oakland, CA area. The first planned Oakland store is taking the reins from neighborhood staple Lanesplitter Pizza (4799 Telegraph Avenue) and is slated to open in Fall 2018, with sights set on opening the additional locations in Downtown Oakland, Lakeshore, or Berkeley.
Trevor first grew an affinity for the New York-based brand when it was just a single shop in Manhattan’s East Village. He helped open two Artichoke locations in Chelsea and Greenwich Village, and being a Northern California native, wanted to bring the brand’s larger-than-life slices and unique flavors back home. Trevor opened the Berkeley store to much fanfare in 2013, and since then, his relationship with the franchisor paired with his passion for the brand has laid the the groundwork for his expansion into Oakland, ultimately strengthening Artichoke’s grip on West Coast markets.
“There’s a lot of growth happening in the Oakland food scene. New and exciting concepts are popping up constantly, and we want Artichoke to be part of the movement,” says Trevor. “We observed a large number of customers traveling to the Berkeley store from Oakland, and many of the UC Berkeley students, who are some of our most loyal customers, move to Oakland neighborhoods after they graduate. I’m excited to bring New York’s best pizza to Oakland residents, and I have full confidence that Artichoke will be well-received by the city’s bustling food scene.”
Artichoke Basille’s Pizza, which has garnered praise from celebrities such as Rachael Ray, Jay Leno, Miley Cyrus, and Leonardo DiCaprio, was founded in 2008 by cousins, best friends, and pizzaiolos Francis Garcia and Sal Basille. After successfully testing slivers of their signature Artichoke Pie in the breadbaskets of their family’s Staten Island restaurant, Garcia and Basille opened the first Artichoke Pizza location in Manhattan’s East Village. The concept quickly grew a cult fanbase that lauded its authentic NYC slices and whole pies, which, unlike other fast casual pizza concepts, are never made in a conveyor belt oven. Artichoke’s offerings range from the traditional (Margherita, Pepperoni, Sicilian) to the unique, like the Surimi-topped Crab Pie or the spinach-and-cream-topped Artichoke Pie, and have collected a slew of awards including being named ‘Best Pizza’ by The New York Post and one of the ‘Top 5 Slices in the Boroughs’ by CBS New York.
The pizza concept currently operates 12 locations across the country in New York, Miami, and Berkeley, CA. Additional multi-unit franchise deals are in development in New Jersey and the Hartford/New Haven areas of Connecticut.
Artichoke Basille’s Pizza is partnered with Fransmart, the industry leading franchise development company behind the explosive growth of brands like Five Guys Burgers & Fries and The Halal Guys, as their exclusive franchise development partner to grow the brand. They are currently looking for experienced multi-unit foodservice operators to develop franchise territories in major markets across the country.
