The Tomato Pizza in Denton Has Flung Its Last Pie After Another Fire

The Tomato Pizza announced through social media recently that it has closed after a fire. The news comes just 11 months after the business reopened in Denton with a new food truck. A video of the fire on Reddit shows Denton fire crews arriving on the scene as smoke and flames poured out of the Tomato Pizza’s food truck. 

Tomato Pizza caught on fire just now
byu/Rilestein inDenton

A Denton Pizza Legacy

Becky and Robert Slusarski opened the Flying Tomato in 1984 on Fry Street, near the University of North Texas, and it became a hotspot for Denton residents and students. In 2007, a developer purchased most of the property surrounding Fry Street and intended to raze the buildings to make way for new businesses. A protest movement called Save Fry Street was formed in hopes of stopping the demolition. Alas, an unidentified suspect or group of suspects set fire to the original Flying Tomato, destroying the building. Denton Police detained a few suspects for questioning who were later released, and no one was ever charged, according to the Denton Record-Chronicle.

Even after the fire and between location changes, the pizzas were so beloved that customers continued to order them. The Slusarskis would meet some of their regulars and most die-hard fans in a Dairy Queen parking lot to make the exchange.

In February 2023, Becky and Robert’s son Michael announced the second incarnation of The Flying Tomato as a food truck – shortening the name to just The Tomato Pizza – 16 years after the first location burned down.

“After dreaming about and working on this project over the last four years, I’m proud to say we’ve taken the first big step of purchasing the food truck that will soon bring The Tomato back,” Michael wrote on The Tomato Pizza’s Instagram page 11 months ago.

The Tomato Pizza’s truck made regular appearances at places like East Side Denton and the Austin Street Truck Stop. The menu offered its familiar rectangular pizza by the slice and its famous Chicago-style stuffed pizza, a massive, one-pound pizza filled with various ingredients, topped with red sauce and a sprinkle of grated cheese.

We reached out to the Tomato Pizza but they declined to comment.

News of the indefinite closing inspired a long list of comments expressing disappointment about the closure and gratitude that the second fire did not harm anyone.

“So sorry to hear this but glad everybody made it out safely,” wrote @thekevmac. “Your community is here for you; let us know what we can do!”

Merch and a Fundraiser

In a show of support and perhaps a bit of holiday spirit, Tomato fans have since been buying up merchandise through the company’s website. After the fire and within one day of announcing the full inventory, they sold out of almost everything. The next day, they posted a video of boxes being packaged and shipped out with a note that they were restocking.

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