Pizza calls for a lot of work behind the scenes, from mixing and proofing dough to chopping toppings and simmering sauce. Before the ovens even heat up, crews have already carried a heavy load of hands-on labor.
Luckily, ready-to-use components like parbaked crusts and prepared sauces help calm the chaos and bring some predictability back to service. That breathing room lets crews spend less time firefighting and more time focused on flavor.
The Crust of the Matter
Dough can make or break a pizza program. Doing it all in-house has its upsides, but it can also take up more time, space, and staff than the day allows. That’s where items like Ultimo!® Pizza Crusts step in.
Because they arrive parbaked and ready to top, these crusts remove some of the biggest unknowns from service. There’s no guessing on proofing, no scrambling to catch up when tickets stack, and fewer mid-shift curveballs. The payoff is a smoother rhythm from oven to plate.
And parbaked doesn’t mean limited. Ultimo! offers a wide range of crust styles, from thin and crispy to hand-tossed, wood-fired, New York-style, and even mozzarella cheese-stuffed options. That variety gives you the flexibility to match the crust to the concept, whether you’re serving classic pies, regional favorites, or something a little more indulgent.
Slice of Advice: Parbaked crusts cut down early-morning prep, making the start of the day easier on kitchen crews.
Stuffed With Wow
Stuffed crust is a guaranteed attention-grabber but pulling it off from scratch can bring a kitchen to a standstill. Guests may think of it as a simple add-on, but the kitchen knows it’s a high-maintenance move.
Ultimo! Mozzarella Cheese-Stuffed Parbaked Crusts take that extra work out of the equation. Because the cheese is already sealed into the crust, kitchens can deliver that gooey payoff without slowing down the line. The result is a crowd-pleasing upgrade that bakes consistently and shows up the same way, pie after pie.
Slice of Advice: Treat stuffed crust as a premium upgrade to boost check averages and generate menu excitement without increasing back-of-house labor.
Sauce Without the Stress
Pizza sauce is one of those things everyone notices when it’s wrong and almost no one talks about when it’s right. Too flat, too sweet, too oregano-forward, and suddenly the whole pie feels off. Get it dialed in, though, and everything else falls into place.
Ultimo! Tomato Sauces take the drama out of the equation. Made with California-grown tomatoes, they deliver a steady, tomato-forward flavor that holds up in the oven and behaves itself under heat. Across different crust styles and bake times, the sauce stays consistent, supports the toppings, and never tries to steal the spotlight.
Slice of Advice: Lean on prepared components for the parts of pizza that are hardest to staff and standardize. Save scratch prep for toppings, finishes, and specials where creativity has the biggest impact.