THE COMPANION GROUP AND PIZZACRAFT®, its premier line of at-home pizza-making tools and accessories (including the award winning Pizzeria Pronto outdoor pizza oven), will be holding its second annual all-you-can-eat pizza festival on October 17 in Berkeley, California. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., guests can sample pizza slices cooked in more than 20 roaring pizza ovens and can vote for the People’s Choice Award, as well as watching demonstrations of pizza-making tools and techniques, shopping in the Pizzacraft store, relaxing in one of the beer gardens, and letting children play in the kids’ fun zone.

The proceeds from this event all go toward Pizzacraft’s favorite charity, Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS), which serves the homeless, poor, and disabled in the Bay Area. Online tickets are $10 for adults, while at-thedoor tickets are $20 (cash only). The ticket buys unlimited slices from the competing teams, as well as $5 off your next pizzacraft.com purchase. Tickets for children under 12 years old (accompanied by an adult) are free.

Cooking teams from last year have been invited back to defend their titles against a new crop of pizzaioli who want to show their stuff. Winners of the People’s Choice Award receive gift certificates for the pizzacraft.com online store, as well as a golden pizza peel.

Pizzafest is expanding its beer selection, with both Lagunitas Brewing Company and Fieldwork Brewing Company pouring brews for $5 (with all proceeds going to BOSS). BOSS will also be there to raise awareness of its fight against the root causes of poverty and homelessness—and to raffle a pizza-oven gift set for $1 per ticket.

Guests inspired by taste testing can learn to make pizza themselves and can shop for pizza-making tools and accessories. There will be demonstrations of the Pizzeria Pronto outdoor pizza oven, a revolutionary propane-powered pizza oven that’s lightweight and portable, but reaches temperatures of 700 degrees or more and can cook a pizza in five minutes (all cooking teams will be using these ovens).

For those who like a little smoke flavor, the PizzaQue pizza kit for kettle grills—which converts a charcoal kettle-style grill into a pizza oven—will be demonstrated. For more information about Pizzafest and Pizzacraft, email pizzafest@ companion-group.com or call (510) 597-3549.