Today we’d like to introduce you to Peter Garces.
Hi Peter , thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Born in 1992 and raised in Brooklyn, New York, I was inspired early by family friend Chef JJ, a James Beard Award-winning chef who helped open the door to my first opportunities in the culinary world.
I attended Penn Tech’s culinary program, and for my first externship, I asked Chef JJ to help me find a great place to learn. He got me a position at Tolani Wine Restaurant, a South African wine-focused restaurant in New York. During my time there, the executive chef told me something that would stay with me for years. He said I had talent, but I needed more real-world experience. I took that advice to heart, left school, and committed myself fully to the kitchen, working my way up from dishwasher to executive chef.
Over nearly two decades, I worked in countless kitchens throughout New York City, refining my craft in fine dining and upscale hospitality at places like Russo’s on the Bay before eventually entering the world of artisan pizza. Among the many restaurants that shaped my career were Roberta’s, where I trained under renowned pizzaiolo Anthony Falco—known by many as “The Pizza Czar”—Pizza Loves Emily, one of New York City’s top pizza destinations, and eventually Mama’s Too, one of the city’s most celebrated pizzerias.
At Mama’s Too, I served as the sole pizzaiolo during the period when the restaurant earned a rare New York Times star, helping solidify its reputation as one of the world’s premier pizza destinations. I even had the honor of being photographed by The New York Times, and the pizzas featured in the review photographs were pizzas I personally made.
Then, during the COVID era, a devastating house fire forced me to start over. I returned to my family’s home in Lakeland, Florida—a place I had vacationed since I was twelve years old after my family purchased a home here. Lakeland was very different when I was a child. Coming back years later, I saw how much the city had grown and evolved, and I recognized an opportunity to bring chef-driven, world-class pizza to a rapidly growing community.
That vision became By The Chef Pizza—an amalgamation of my culinary experiences and everything I had learned throughout my career.
Today, drawing on nearly twenty years of experience, I am proud to bring the techniques, standards, and creativity of New York City’s top kitchens to Lakeland, creating a destination for pizza lovers seeking something truly unique.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The last true struggle I had was when my house burned down. In relation to my business and getting up and going, I have had a relatively smooth ride. But it is only due to the support and help of my mother and father. As well as my résumé and work experience. With all the experience, I have running top restaurants in New York. I was able to fast track my business. We opened in April 20 24 as a mobile business and move to a brick and mortar in January 2025.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
By the Chef pizza is Polk County’s premium pizza providers. By the Chef pizza is a Chef driven specialty pizzeria. We focus on quality premium ingredients, and Chef crafted culinary creations. And by the Chef pizza, we do not do a build your own pizza or a customizable. Everything on our menu is Chef crafted to be a culinary experience.
We have three types of crust. The first is the premium New York style crust, which is an authentic true New York style pizza. The next we have the neo New York, which is a contemporary artist intake on the New York style pizza. The Neo, New York style crust is more in line with New York’s top pizzerias such as mamas too, lucalis, spumoni Gardens, Etc.. finally we offer our focaccia deep dish style crust. Our focaccia deep dish crust is very unique because it is treated more in line with focaccia bread rather than a typical square pizza. Our focaccia crust is light airy crispy, and Rich. It is very unique and when you come in to by the Chef pizza, it is what you will find in our display window available in slices.
I would want readers to know that by the Chef pizza holds a very serious attitude toward providing a premium product. If it is not correct, we will not sell it.. these days. Everything is expensive and we want to give customers something that is worth their hard earned money.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
My advice is do not hesitate or wait to ask someone a question. The worst that can happen is you do not get a response. The best thing that can happen is you gain a mentor or someone that can help change your perspective. What works for me when it comes to networking is being friendly and genuine.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.Bythechef.pizza
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bythechefpizza
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BdkhYarWf/
Image Credits
Sophia Hafner
