Pizza complaints at Tommy's Tavern and Tap dropped from approximately 1.5% to 0.25% after the 19-location bar-and-grill concept switched to Bacio Cheese — a data point the Leprino Foods-owned brand is now using to recruit full-service restaurant operators across the country into a premium cheese program it has long sold to dedicated pizzerias.
The Numbers
A 2026 Bacio-commissioned survey found 97% of U.S. consumers love or like pizza, and 88% report eating the same amount or more pizza compared with the prior year. For bar-and-grill operators seeking incremental traffic and check-size growth, those figures frame pizza not as a commodity side item but as a viable anchor category — provided the product quality sustains repeat-visit intent. Bacio's pitch is that premium cheese is the variable most operators underinvest in.
The Tommy's Case Study
Tommy's Tavern and Tap — a diverse-menu concept spanning sushi, burgers, and tavern fare — built its coal-fired pizza into a signature destination item using Bacio's shredded cheese blends. Executive Chef Chris Perrino described the economics in straightforward terms: spending one dollar on better ingredients to generate eight dollars in guest retention and repeat visits is, in his words, "really good math." Beyond quality perception, the switch yielded operational benefits. Bacio supplies proprietary measuring cups calibrated for precise cheese coverage, which Perrino credits with standardizing output across all 19 locations. Off-premise performance also improved; Perrino noted that a Bacio slice picked up twenty minutes after cooking still pulls like fresh mozzarella rather than turning oily or rubbery — a material advantage as takeout volumes continue to grow across full-service segments. The same cheese also appears in Tommy's spinach and artichoke dip, consolidating inventory without sacrificing quality consistency.
The business has deployed cash-back rewards earned through Bacio's Gold Club Rewards program in an unconventional way: funding a dedicated traveling pizza specialist who trains staff on technique and precision across all 19 restaurants. "We used our rewards to hire our best pizza guy to travel restaurant to restaurant teaching our staff how to make pizza with Bacio," Perrino said.
Operator and Market Context
The move to cultivate bar-and-grill accounts reflects a broader opportunity in full-service restaurant ingredient premiumization. As dining-out frequency faces ongoing pressure from value-conscious consumers, operators in the casual and upscale-casual tiers are increasingly differentiating through ingredient quality rather than price promotion. Pizza is a particularly attractive lever because its food cost structure, when managed through portion controls and consistent melt performance, can sustain margins competitive with higher-labor menu categories.
Bacio Brand Manager Bobbi Laski framed the competitive angle directly: "A premium pizza program can be the differentiator operators need. Backed by deep pizza expertise, the Bacio team delivers actionable insights that help bar-and-grill operators compete with pizzerias, while remaining true to their established brand and menu offerings."
The Gold Club Rewards program, available through Performance Food Group distribution, tracks purchases automatically and grants members access to Bacio's Marketing Store for customized merchandising support. The structure mirrors loyalty and co-marketing arrangements increasingly common across foodservice ingredient supply chains, where distributors and branded suppliers share data to deepen operator retention. Bacio's parent, Leprino Foods, is the world's largest mozzarella producer, giving the brand significant manufacturing scale behind the premium-positioning message.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
