LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - Nov 3, 2014) - Blaze Fast Fire'd Pizza, the nation's leading build-your-own pizza chain, today announced that it will open its first New Jersey restaurant on Thursday, November 6th. To celebrate the grand opening, the Paramus location will offer FREE build-your-own artisanal pizzas on Friday, November 7 between 11:00 a.m. and midnight to anyone who follows Blaze Pizza on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. The fast-casual concept, known for its chef-driven menu and casually hip restaurants, is located in Paramus at 35 Plaza (65 Route 4), near Chipotle.

Blaze Pizza is a modern day "pizza joint" known for its custom-built artisanal pizzas, freshly made salads, blood orange lemonade and s'more pies. Each restaurant features an interactive assembly-line format that allows guests to customize one of the menu's signature pizzas or create their own, choosing from a wide selection of fresh, artisanal ingredients -- all for under $8. The generously-sized 11-inch pizzas are then sent to a blazing hot open-flame oven -- the centerpiece of the restaurant -- where dedicated pizzasmiths ensure that the thin-crust pies are fast-fire'd and ready to eat in just 180 seconds. Each restaurant makes its own dough from scratch using a recipe developed by critically-acclaimed Executive Chef Bradford Kent ("The Pizza Whisperer"), which requires a 24-hour fermentation period to produce his signature light-as-air, crisp crust. For pizza fans with specific dietary needs, Blaze Pizza offers gluten-free dough and vegan cheese.

Blaze opened its first East Coast location in July at West Babylon's Great South Bay Shopping Center (1047 West Montauk Highway). It's footprint in the greater New York/New Jersey area will soon expand to five locations, with the opening of Bay Shore's South Shore Mall (1701 Sunrise Highway) in late 2014, and two additional locations, in Clark, NJ and White Plains, NY, in 2015.

"Our mission at Blaze is really simple -- we're all about bringing the community a place where guests can connect, create and enjoy great pizza at crazy fast speed," said Jim Mizes, president & COO of Blaze Pizza. "If you think about it, there hasn't been a good way to enjoy a made-from-scratch pizza without the wait. Now there is. We believe this will be a game-changer in town."

About Blaze Pizza
The first Blaze Pizza^® restaurant opened on August 6, 2012 in Irvine, CA, and quickly gained attention for its chef-driven recipes and "build-your-own pizza" assembly-line format. Described by Zagat as "One of 10 Innovative Restaurants in Los Angeles," Blaze Pizza is developing a cult following as it expands across the U.S. The company currently operates restaurants in 11 states and the District of Columbia, including the major metropolitan areas of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington D.C. Founded by Elise and Rick Wetzel (co-founder of Wetzel's Pretzels), the concept is backed by investors including LeBron James, Maria Shriver, Boston Red Sox co-owner Tom Werner and movie producer John Davis. For more information, please visit blazepizza.com and facebook.com/blazepizza.