PizzaRev, the San Fernando Valley fast-casual pizza chain, opened a sixth location Thursday as part of a major expansion planned for the next 12 months. The 2,600-square-foot Burbank outlet is one of the chain’s largest, and is opening at 175 E. Palm Ave. in the heart of the city’s downtown. The chain, founded last year, received a major equity investment this year from Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. of Minneapolis. It is seeking to expand rapidly amid strong competition in the restaurant segment, which features a Chipotle assembly-line approach to making pizza cooked in minutes in high-temperature ovens. Jeff Zuckerman, chief marketing officer for PizzaRev, based in Studio City, said the Burbank outlet will serve as the company’s flagship. “The location of the restaurant on the palm walking plaza in downtown Burbank is in one of the highest profile retail areas in the San Fernando Valley, and our two-story build-out is our most ambitious and innovative of our current locations,” he said. Nicholas Eckerman, co-founder and chief operating executive, said the company is planning to roll out one new corporate-owned location each month next year, starting with a Van Nuys location in January. Other planned locations include Valencia, Pasadena, and Mid-City Los Angeles. The company currently has outlets in Northridge, Studio City, Woodland Hills, El Segundo and Oxnard. Competitors include Blaze Pizza LLC of Pasadena and 800 Degrees, a unit of Umami Restaurant Group of Los Angeles.
