Zaza Wood-Fired Pizza and Mediterranean Cuisine Fires Up Not Only Delicious Pizza, but my Relationship as Well

If there’s one food that I am no stranger to, it’s pizza. I LOVE pizza.

If pizza was what was being served at my wedding, I would be over the moon happy. Not because I just got married, but because I know there’s a large supply of hot dough and gooey cheese waiting for me after.

True talk – I haven’t met a pizza I didn’t like.

And yes, there was a time in my life where I got on a 7-11 pizza kick, but I don’t like to talk about that. It’s a little shameful.

ANYWAY, when David told me about a NEW pizza place that he wanted to try and that we could go there for date night, I was never more attracted to him than at that moment.

The place is called Zaza. It specializes in Wood fired pizzas and Mediterranean cuisine. Mediterranean food is also a favorite of mine, so when I saw I could get the best of both worlds there, I was very excited.

Zaza was established in 2013 and founded by Saif Dari. A native of Jordan, Dari went to Italy in 1992 where he had a tough time navigating since he didn’t speak Italian.

However, he had a passion for pizza and since he was in the motherland of pies, he adapted quickly.

After perfecting the craft by working in pizzerias in the tourist seasons, at 22, Dari opened his own pizzeria called Non Solo Pizza with much success.

Wanting to be closer to family in Ann Arbor, Dari traveled here to Toledo and set to work on opening a new restaurant.

He tried a number of American franchises to taste the traditional toppings and flavors. This led to him opening Zaza in an effort to expose us to the authentic Italian pies he loves so much.

Walking in, the first thing I noticed was the very large American flag hanging from the ceiling as if Dari were saying “Hello America!”

There was a very large pizza menu on the left wall by the counter. The decor and atmosphere were typical of what I was anticipating.

Of course, I could not miss the beautiful wood fire pizza oven tucked in the back that was indeed imported from the boot itself.

We discovered that this was more of a fast casual restaurant where we order at the counter, and then they bring the food to our table when it was ready.

The menu has over 23 unique creations.

My mouth watered just looking over the options.

The pizzas ranged from the traditional margherita, to more unique offerings such as the Capricciosa, a pie consisting of sautéed mushrooms, turkey, ham, and herb marinated artichokes. Each Italian pizza highlights flavors from northern Italy.

The menu also offers an array of traditional Mediterranean dishes from hummus and grape leaves, to Mediterranean inspired pizzas, lentil soup, fattoush, falafel and more.

David had gone over the menu before we left and had already known what he wanted. After I looked everything over for a couple of minutes, we ordered the Diavola, The Mediterranean, and a small order of grape leaves for an appetizer.

The grape leaves ($5.49) were stuffed with ground beef, rice, and traditional spices. They were delicious, but I noticed some were heated through more than others. There was a lack of consistency there, but that didn’t bother me too much. The beef was well seasoned, and they were tender with a slight tang.

When the pizzas came to our table, my mouth started watering again. They were paper thin, and the crusts were beautifully charred and crispy.

David had ordered the Diavola ($11.75), which consisted of fresh mozzarella, fresh tomato sauce, sliced beef pepperoni, roasted peppers, and spicy extra virgin olive oil. It was so yummy. That olive oil gave a welcoming heat and the pepperoni were delightfully crispy that the edges turned up a bit.

I ordered the Mediterranean ($13.50), fresh pizza sauce, fresh mozzarella, fresh ground beef, kalamata olives, feta cheese, fresh tomatoes and oregano. SO GOOD.

The seasoned ground beef, the saltiness from the olives and feta, the bright burst of the fresh tomatoes, the crispy crust…. It was enough to send me to pizza heaven.