Homegrown Chef Lives Dream of Opening Downtown Pizzeria
/After almost 20 years in the cooking business, chef Sean Crooks gets to be his own boss by opening Pizza Bodega in downtown Peterborough in a grand opening on Friday.
Pizza Bodega’s logo was designed by Sean Crooks’s significant other. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
Pizza Bodega is Crooks’s first business and is located at the side of Spanky’s bar on Hunter Street beside the Simcoe Parking Garage.
The restaurant models after New York-style pizza with a thinner crust and a bigger pie compared to most conventional places.
The opportunity to open a business came from his friendship with Matt Russelle, Spanky’s owner, who asked Crooks to supply the food for his business.
"Spanky and I have jokingly talked about working together here and there over the years," said Crooks. "The timing just happened and it seemed to be the right time and here we are."
Sean Crooks has also worked in Prince Edward County and abroad in Western Canada. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
Crooks’s cooking career has had pizza follow him wherever he has gone. That made the decision to open a pizzeria as his first business venture.
Several of Pizza Bodega’s ingredients are sourced either locally or within Ontario including dry-cured pepperoni, smoked ham and spiced ground wagyu. Gluten-free and vegan options will be available on the menu.
"Everybody loves pizza and (I’m) trying to make the pizza fun and not too pretentious,” said Crooks.
Sean Crooks has worked in several Peterborough kitchens such as Primal Cuts, Gerti’s and Capra Toro. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
