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The daughter of a local pizza-making family is getting ready to show off her culinary skills at an upcoming national competition where the teen will debut her very own pie topped with an unlikely ingredient: mangoes.
Zoe Zabrowski — whose parents, Kira and Mark Zabrowski, own Much Ado About Pizza in Pleasanton — will be taking part in the upcoming Young Pizza Makers Contest at the Pizza Tomorrow Summit in Orlando, Fla. from Nov. 11-13.
The Livermore High School sophomore said she doesn’t necessarily want to follow in her parents’ footsteps as her main goal is to study psychology to become a social worker. However, she still hopes to do well in her first competition next week, and possibly more in the future.
“This year I kind of decided I want to compete. I want to try something different,” Zoe Zabrowski told the Weekly. “Even if I don’t win I think I want to try it again at least maybe once or twice.”
The Zabrowskis, who live in Livermore, first embarked on their pizza-making journey during the coronavirus pandemic.
Kira and Mark Zabrowski were both educators before going into the pizza business. They entered international conventions and competitions for a couple of years before opening up their brick-and-mortar store in the Mission Plaza shopping center on Santa Rita Road in the summer of 2022.
Since then, they have built a strong reputation for their renowned slow-fermented sourdough crusts and Shakespeare-themed restaurant.
When the couple heard of the upcoming pizza summit having a contest specifically for youth, they decided to ask their kids if they wanted to enter the contest. Kira Zabrowski said she was a bit surprised to hear her daughter was interested in competing, especially given the stress that could come with having to present to live panels and judges.
“I’m nervous talking about it,” Kira Zabrowski told the Weekly.
However, the two parents said they are proud of their daughter for stepping out of her comfort zone.
With the competition coming up in less than a week, the family seeks the community’s support in both encouraging their daughter to do well and in supporting the family business.
Zoe Zabrowski has already started to receive props from the community as she recently began to test bake her new pizza, which features unique ingredients including a mango-based salsa and other savory toppings to balance out the sweet and acidity.
“We just want to say how appreciative we are of the local community and obviously our pizza community for rallying behind Zoe and supporting her,” Mark Zabrowski said.
Kira Zabrowski said some of their vendors and other sponsors have been sending Zoe swag and items like her own personalized chef coat with her name.
“I actually never thought that that many people would have wanted to sponsor me,” Zoe Zabrowski said. “I’m really glad that a lot of people wanted to support me and help me with making it to the competition.”
The family will be shutting down operations at Much Ado from Sunday through Nov. 14 as they head south for the competition, so they said they are especially appreciative of the help from surrounding businesses and community members, including sponsoring Zoe or buying some pizza before they leave.
Good Luck!
We’ll be rooting for you, Zoe!