Family-owned and -operated Jax Wood Fired Pizza — which is known for its pizzas made using a sourdough starter — just opened its second location. Its first location is in Haleʻiwa, but its second store, just across Shark’s Cove, boasts a larger seating area that’s perfect for families, according to Elisha Danzik, director of marketing and IT for Jax Wood Fired Pizza.
“We really wanted space and to have a lot of seating,” she says. “Our Haleiwa store seats around 25 to 30 people. We wanted a space where we could have large gatherings. We wanted to have more community events and a great space where people could come and experience the true Aloha Spirit of the North Shore.”
The new location is clustered with a group of food trucks across of Sharks Cove. It opened Sept. 21 and is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to Danzik.
“The entire process of this place came together from April or May until now; it was very fast,” Danzik says.
This location features the same menu as the Haleiwa store, for the most part. It’s a little smaller — there are no Greek gyros or calzones — and more streamlined, but still offers some of the business’s best-selling pizzas. Pizzas are 12 inches each and are still made using the business’s house sourdough, according to Danzik.
“We make pizzas with fresh, local ingredients and our kiawe wood fire oven in the truck,” she says. “Our dough is four ingredients — our sourdough starter, flour, water and salt. Our sourdough starter is more than 30 years old; we grow it and feed it all here in-house.”
The trailer for the Shark’s Cove location was shipped to Oʻahu from the Mainland, but the Danziks did a lot of construction to incorporate an oven into the trailer.
“This oven gets even hotter (than the one at the Haleiwa store); it cooks pizzas in three to four minutes, five minutes on average,” Danzik says.
“It’s a Stefano Ferrara oven,” explains Isaiah Danzik, chief operating operator of Jax Wood Fired Pizza. “It features 1-inch stones on a bed of ash, sand and gravel-like lava rocks. The stones get hot really fast; it cooks the pizzas faster.”
The three most popular pizzas include the sweet Hawaiian barbecue ($20.95), margherita ($20.95) and Da Kine ($24.95). Sweet Hawaiian barbecue features a barbecue sauce base, shredded mozzarella, kalua pork, pineapple and a barbecue sauce drizzle.
“This is our variation of the Hawaiian pizza,” Danzik says. “Some places use chicken; we do kalua pork.”
The margherita ($20.95) is a classic, comprising an Italian tomato sauce base, fresh mozzarella, sea salt, olive oil and fresh basil. Meanwhile, Da Kine ($24.95) is designed with meat lovers in mind. It also has an Italian tomato sauce base and is topped with shredded mozzarella, kalua pork, sausage, pepperoni, bacon and fresh basil.
The biz also features a variety of olive oil-based pizzas, including the Jax Paradise ($20.95), spinach artichoke ($21.95) and truffle mushroom ($22.95). The latter is a customer favorite; it includes shredded mozzarella, ricotta, mushrooms, arugula, truffle oil drizzle and a balsamic glaze drizzle.
Customers can take advantage of a happy hour special available daily from 3 to 5 p.m. The happy hour specials includes deals on cheese ($10.99) and pepperoni ($12.99) pizzas. The biz also offers a build-your-own-pizza lunch special from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
If you’re looking for an appetizer that’s easy to share, go for the eatery’s breadsticks, which are cut into 10 pieces. Cheesy garlic ($10.95) comes with a side of ranch and marinara, while the goat and honey ($13.95) is served with a side of honey. The fresh sourdough base is topped with garlic-infused olive oil, shredded mozzarella, goat cheese and a honey drizzle.
“They’re (the breadsticks) a good value option if you’re trying to feed a lot of people,” Danzik says.
Customers wanting something a bit lighter can opt for mixed greens ($16.95) or beet and goat ($18.95) salads. The mixed greens salad is simple and refreshing, featuring a bed of organic mixed greens topped with roasted red peppers, red onions, cherry tomatoes and balsamic dressing on the side.
For updates, follow the business on social media.
“Stay tuned for more community events,” Danzik says. “I want to do big movie nights where people can come, sit and watch movies and eat pizza. We’re really excited for all that is to come.”
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CONTACT
Jax Wood Fired Pizza – Shark’s Cove
59-712 Kamehameha Hwy., Haleʻiwa
Jaxpizza.org
Instagram: @jaxwoodfiredpizza
Open daily, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.
Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
