“As a child, I dreamed of making pizzas”, the pioneer of mobile pizza returns to Tonneins

We could write “New in Tonneins”. But that would not be entirely true… If indeed, it is under the name of Pizza Delightss that Nicolas Gibert drives his pizza truck, here he is known to be The Pizza Maker. Since May 2024, he has returned to Tonneins (Lot-et-Garonne) one day a week at the intersection of the Petit Gascon and Barrault car parks.

At the mention of this name, memories come flooding back. Because the story begins 45 years ago, with the uncle, Jean-Michel, in 1979… It was a bit like the beginning of pizza trucks in France.

My uncle was the first traveling pizza maker in the department.

Three restaurants

It was a success, and like a good business man, “the towns in which it worked best, he opened a pizzeria” says Nicolas Gibert. This is how he opened three Pizzatier restaurants, in Tonneins (rue Charles de Gaulle), Casteljaloux and Marmande.

Jean-Michel then sold his business to his brother Jean-Claude, Nicolas’s father. The latter, born in the environment, had a childhood dream: “make pizza. I like it, meeting customers, making them happy…” He also remembers exactly where he was that evening. France’s victory at the 1998 FIFA World Cup“in Tonneins, I made pizzas at the Pizzatier,” he smiles.

No wonder he took over the family business. 13 years ago now. Although many things have changed, notably the name of the company, there is something that has always remained the same and which has made its pizzas successful: dough.

It’s been the same dough recipe for 45 years. You can eat it right away or later by reheating it, it stays as if it came out of the oven. And we work with fresh products, as local as possible.

“I absolutely wanted to come back to Tonneins”

Installed on the Aiguillon side, “ I absolutely wanted to come back to Tonneins. Many customers have been coming from here to Aiguillon for years,” explains the pizza chef. Here it is, every Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

From now on, he crisscrosses the department with two trucks, “store vehicles that have been converted into food trucks. Hygiene and origin of products are very important to me. Two trucks, that allows us to do two tours “we also do a lot of services for corporate events or weddings…”.

And since pizza is his passion, he likes to pass it on. The company counts three pizza makerstwo saleswomen, some of whom were given tenure after having completed their apprenticeship with him.

Two tours

The first pizza truck is: in Buzet-sur-Baïse on Tuesday; in Nérac on Wednesday and Saturday; in Lavardac on Thursday; in Aiguillon on Friday, Saturday and Sunday; in Colayrac on Friday.

The second truck: to Laparade on Monday; Clairac on Tuesday; Feugarolles on Wednesday; in Tonneins on Thursday; in Bouglon on Friday.

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