Pizza Studio, the first fast-casual pizzeria to swing open its doors in Tucson, is expanding.
Less than five months after opening his first Pizza Studio at the UA area Next Level student housing complex, former UA football player Trace Biskin will open No. 2 at 6501 E. Grant Road on Monday. But on Saturday, he's introducing himself and the California-born chain's crispy, super-fast-from-the-oven you-customize-your-own pizzas to the neighborhood.
He's hosting "Free Pizza For A Cause" from 11 a.m to 2:30 p.m. and from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday to benefit Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Southern Arizona. He's encouraging guests to donate any amount of money, cash or check, in exchange for a free pizza and fountain drink. If you have no money, no worries; he'll still give you a free lunch.
The second Pizza Studio opens at 11 a.m. Monday. Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily in a retail plaza that also will be home to Jersey Mike's Subs and Chipotle. Jersey Mike's is expected to open Dec. 17; Chipotle will open in February.
Tucson-born Pionic Pizza on North Campbell Avenue opened two days after Pizza Studio in early August. Since then, two other fast-casual pizza chains have made inroads into Tucson, including Phoenix-based Fired Pie, which opened on East Congress Street downtown Wednesday.
