Laura Meyer

Laura Meyer’s first job was working at Pyzano’s Pizza, her local pizzeria. At just 17 years old, the pizzeria was where Laura met her mentor, Tony Gemignani, and her career as a pizzaiola began. Upon graduating college, Laura moved to San Francisco to take the helm at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana as kitchen manager alongside Tony himself. In 2013, Laura won first place in her first competition in Parma, Italy, becoming the first woman and first American to win the Pizza in Teglia category. The following year, she won Best Non-Traditional Pizza at Pizza Expo in Las Vegas. In 2019, she won first place at the Caputo Cup in Naples, Italy for Best American-Style Pizza, once again becoming the first—this time winning in a newly created category in one of Italy’s oldest pizza competitions. Throughout her tenure at Tony’s, Laura's rising success earned her recognition as SF Chronicle’s Rising Star Chef, an Eater Young Gun, and one of Zagat’s 30 Under 30, and was named Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2016. With an insatiable quest for learning, Laura took on the role of teaching assistant and administrator at Tony’s International School of Pizza where she taught countless chefs and operators for ten hard working years. A newly developed passion for teaching led Laura to speaking opportunities at Pizza Expo, and a role as a contributing writer to Pizza Today magazine. Amid the pandemic, Laura dipped her toes into the waters of entrepreneurship, opening Focaccia da Laura, a focaccia pop-up. Given the success and prospects of Focaccia da Laura, Laura made the decision to depart Tony’s wing after nearly 20 years to open Pizzeria da Laura in Berkeley, California in March of 2023.