Zachary's Chicago Pizza

What Zachary's Chicago Pizza does

Zachary's Chicago Pizza is a privately held, 100% employee-owned restaurant company (ESOP, fully employee-owned since 2010) that operates six full-service casual pizza restaurants across the East Bay of San Francisco: Oakland-Rockridge (original, 1983), Oakland-Grand Lake (2019), North Berkeley (1984), Pleasant Hill (2013), Pleasanton (relocated from San Ramon in 2021), and Livermore. The company's core product is its proprietary Stuffed Chicago Style Pizza, constructed with two thin layers of house-made dough encasing cheese and toppings, topped with zesty diced tomato sauce and slow-baked; it also offers a Thin Style Pizza with cornmeal-dusted dough, plus gluten-free, vegan, and half-baked options that travel for finishing at home or shipping.

The company monetizes primarily through dine-in, direct takeout/online ordering via the Toast Tab platform, and third-party delivery through DoorDash, UberEats, and Grubhub. Stuffed pizzas price from $22.35 (10" cheese) to $42.30 (14" specialty), thin pizzas from $15.45 to $27.80, and lunch slices at $6.50-$7.00, with a $13.25 lunch special. Ancillary revenue streams include corporate Business Accounts (invoicing, $350+ lunch delivery), school and non-profit fundraising days (percentage of revenue donated), branded merchandise, and digital/physical gift cards. All operations are supported by a long-tenured staff (CEO with 39 years, 30 pizza makers with 10+ years tenure) and differentiated by 225+ "Best Pizza" awards spanning four decades, including Michelin Guide Recommended status (2006-2014) and TripAdvisor #1 in Oakland (2017-2018).

Name

Zachary's Chicago Pizza

Legal name

Zachary's Chicago Pizza, Inc.

Website

https://zacharys.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Zachary's Chicago Pizza is a 100% employee-owned restaurant chain operating six East Bay (San Francisco) locations, serving signature two-layer stuffed Chicago-style pizza alongside thin-crust, gluten-free, and vegan options to Bay Area families, food enthusiasts, and corporate accounts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pizza Restaurant

NAICS

Special Food Services (7223)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Pizza Fast Casual (THAFABAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family-Style Restaurants (THAFACAC)

Keywords

• Chicago-style stuffed pizza
• Thin crust pizza
• Pizza restaurant chain
• Employee-owned restaurant
• Bay Area dining

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Restaurant Sales: Six restaurant locations offering dine-in service with indoor seating. Reservations available at most locations, with walk-ins accepted. Happy hour programs at select locations.
2. Takeout and Online Ordering: Direct online ordering for pickup through company website. Third-party delivery via DoorDash and UberEats.
3. Fundraising Programs: Percentage of revenues donated back to schools and non-profit community organizations during scheduled fundraising days at any location.
4. Business Accounts: Corporate accounts for companies ordering pizza for employees. Monthly invoicing or invoicing after each visit. Monday to Friday limited delivery for lunch orders over $350 with 72hrs advance notice.
5. Merchandise and Gift Cards: Sale of Zachary's branded merchandise including t-shirts, hats, and gift cards (both digital and physical).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Zachary's Chicago Pizza operates six East Bay restaurants serving its signature Chicago-style stuffed pizza — two layers of house-made dough filled with cheese and fresh toppings, topped with zesty diced tomato sauce and slowly baked — alongside traditional thin-crust pizza dusted with cornmeal. The company also offers salads, gluten-free and vegan pizza variants, a half-baked option for finishing at home, branded merchandise and gift cards, corporate business accounts with invoicing, and a fundraising program for schools and non-profits.

Product overview

Zachary's Chicago Pizza operates six restaurant locations in the San Francisco Bay Area, offering two core pizza products: Stuffed Chicago Style Pizza (their signature deep-dish with two dough layers, premium cheese, toppings, and zesty tomato sauce) and Thin Style Pizza (traditional thin-crust with cornmeal-dusted dough). The company also provides Half-Baked Pizzas for finishing at home, plus specialty offerings including Gluten-Free Thin-Crust and Vegan pizza options. Beyond food, the product portfolio includes Gift Cards (digital and physical), branded Merchandise (t-shirts, hats, swag packs), Business Accounts for corporate ordering with invoicing, and a Fundraising Program for schools and non-profits. The company operates as a 100% employee-owned business model with ESOP benefits for staff.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Stuffed Chicago Style Pizza Zachary's signature deep-dish stuffed pizza featuring two layers of house-made dough with cheese and toppings sandwiched between, finished with zesty diced tomato sauce and slow-baked until golden. Available in Small, Medium, and Large sizes for dine-in, takeout, and delivery customers across all six East Bay locations.
• Thin Style Pizza Traditional thin-crust pizza with fresh house-made dough rolled to moderate thickness and dusted with cornmeal, topped with seasoned diced tomato sauce and chosen ingredients. Available in Small (10"), Medium (12"), Large (14"), X-Large (16"), and Gluten-Free (11") sizes for dine-in, takeout, and delivery customers.
• Half-Baked Pizzas

Quantifiable outcome

• Ranked #1 of 1,120 restaurants in Oakland on Trip Advisor (2017-2018)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DoorDashcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partner for pizza delivery. Zachary's offers delivery through DoorDash at all locations, though the company notes that restaurant delivery services add high surcharges to menu items and delivery fees.
• UberEatscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partner for pizza delivery. Available at all Zachary's locations.
• GrubhubminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partner for online ordering. Links available on Zachary's website.
• Toast TabcoreTechnology or IntegrationOnline ordering and reservation platform provider. Used for direct online ordering for pickup and table reservations across all locations.
• MailchimpminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNewsletter and marketing campaign platform. Used to send newsletters and promotional content to subscribers.
• YelpminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBusiness presence and promotions. Zachary's maintains a business profile on Yelp for customer reviews and visibility.
• Visit California (California Travel & Tourism Commission)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerChosen as a go-to restaurant in the Bay Area by Visit California and California Dream Eater.
• California Dream EaterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSelected as a go-to restaurant in the Bay Area for food recommendations.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Pizza Hut: National pizza QSR incumbent offering dine-in, carryout, and delivery. Comparable on pizza as core product and broad distribution channels, but operates at much larger scale with predominantly thin/pan crust formats rather than stuffed.
• Domino's Pizza: Largest US pizza chain by unit count with dominant delivery and digital ordering platform. Comparable as direct pizza competitor in delivery channels, though entirely different price point and dine-in model.
• California Pizza Kitchen: Casual dining pizza concept with national footprint and broader menu. Comparable in casual full-service pizza positioning, but offers broader menu diversification and operates at scale across multiple US markets.
• Papa John's: National pizza delivery chain comparable in pizza-focused menu and delivery-driven model. Competes with Zachary's for delivery occasions but operates at scale and uses thinner crust formats rather than stuffed.

Emerging players

• Blaze Pizza: Fast-casual build-your-own pizza chain that has rapidly scaled across the US. Comparable as a pizza concept targeting similar consumer occasions but with faster cook times, lower price points, and counter-service rather than full-service dining.
• Cheese Board Collective: Berkeley-based worker-owned pizza collective operating a single location. Comparable as a Bay Area pizza concept with strong local cult following and alternative ownership structure, though much smaller scale.

Regional players

• Straw Hat Pizza: Historic California pizza chain founded in 1959, with current footprint concentrated in Northern California. Comparable as a legacy California pizza concept with similar regional family dining positioning.
• Round Table Pizza: Long-established California pizza chain with locations throughout the West Coast. Comparable in being a regional California pizza concept, though its menu and price points are oriented to family casual rather than premium stuffed pizza.
• Mountain Mike's Pizza: California-based pizza chain founded in 1978 with over 200 locations across the Western US. Comparable regional pizza concept with similar legacy footprint and casual dine-in model, though primarily thin-crust focused.

Direct peers

• Patxi's Pizza: Bay Area-based pizza chain specializing in Chicago deep-dish and stuffed pizza. Closest direct comparable to Zachary's in product format, customer base, and regional positioning, with overlapping East Bay presence.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PizzaZacharys
• Instagraminstagram.com/zacharyspizza
• Xx.com/ZacharysPizza

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zachary's Chicago Pizza