GARNER, NC--(Marketwired - Dec 17, 2015) - Blaze Fast-Fire'd Pizza, the fast casual artisanal pizza concept known for its chef-driven menu and casually hip restaurants, announced today the opening of their second North Carolina location, in Garner, conveniently located at 140 Cabela Drive (near Cabela's and Starbucks). To celebrate its grand opening, the restaurant is offering free build-your-own artisanal pizzas tomorrow, Friday, December 18 between 11:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., to anyone who follows Blaze Pizza on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.

The Triangle remains one of the fastest growing regions nationwide, as more businesses, students and young professionals relocate to Raleigh and its surrounding areas. Fortunately for local residents, the growing population brings with it a wider variety of options for dining out. Blaze Pizza offers guests custom-built pizzas, cooked in a matter of minutes and priced to fit all budgets. The restaurant's interactive assembly-line setup lets guests create their own pizza, choosing from a wide selection of artisanal toppings, such as crumbled meatballs, cherry tomatoes, pesto drizzle and goat cheese -- all for around $8.

Blaze Pizza makes its own dough from scratch, using a recipe developed by critically-acclaimed Executive Chef Brad Kent ("The Pizza Whisperer"), which requires a 24-hour fermentation period to produce his signature light-as-air, crisp crust. Each 11-inch pizza cooks in a blazing hot, open flame oven where dedicated pizzasmiths ensure that the thin-crust pie is "fast-fire'd" and ready to eat in just 180 seconds.

Additionally, the menu includes freshly made salads, Blaze Pizza's signature blood orange lemonade and s'more pies for dessert. The restaurant offers gluten-free dough and vegan cheese to accommodate guests with specific dietary needs.

"In recent years, the Raleigh area has become home to some of the best food in the country. Blaze Pizza will fit right in," said Russell Hansen, Operating Partner for Blaze Pizza in North Carolina. "Triangle diners will love our high-quality, artisanal ingredients and the price tag to go along with them."

The Garner restaurant features a newly renovated, 2500-square-foot interior with seating for 60 inside and additional seating on an outdoor patio. Driven by Blaze Pizza's commitment to "Intelligent Choices for Our Pizzas, People and Planet," the space was constructed with recycled and sustainable materials, uses ecofriendly packaging and features energy-efficient LED lighting. The new location will be open 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. every day. 

The Garner location is the second Blaze Pizza opened by North Carolina-based Blazin' Blue LLC. The franchise group opened its debut restaurant in Morrisville's Park West Village (1024 Market Center Dr.) in December 2014.

About Blaze Pizza

The first Blaze Pizza^® restaurant opened on Aug. 6, 2012, in Irvine, Calif., and quickly gained attention for its chef-driven recipes, thoughtful interior design and a service culture that celebrates individuality. Now ranked as the overall #2 fast-casual brand in FastCasual.com's annual Top 100 list, Blaze Pizza is building momentum and developing a cult-like following as it expands across the country. The company currently operates 103 restaurants in 25 states and Canada, including the major metropolitan areas of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Dallas 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 or click here to view a company video.