Lars Smith was born and raised in Palo Alto, CA part of a 3rd generation family in the Bay Area. This podcast was recorded on location at the State of Mind Slice House, their second location, which coincidentally Lars lived and grew up with down the street.
Lars got into food early especially from both of his Grandmothers' cooking who provided an inspiration. Despite not receiving any formal culinary training, Lars worked his way up from making pizzas to managing numerous pizzeria locations with Pizza My Heart. Learning under the tutelage of Leah Scurto who now owns Pizza Leah in Windsor, CA. Before deciding to open a pizzeria of his own, Lars made the US Pizza Team after winning a competition for World’s Best Non-Traditional Pizza at the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas. Traveling and competing to Italy has impacted his life and cooking in so many ways. Lars and his wife Cristina have gone on to win and place in numerous elite level pizza competitions locally and internationally. Lars won the Non-Traditional Pizza category at the 2017 International Pizza Expo and has placed 5th in the World in Italy for his alla Pala Roman-Style pizza. Additional competitions include the World Pizza Championships, Real California Cheese Pizza Contest and the US Virtual Pizza Cup.
Lars and his family pour their heart into State of Mind Public House and Pizzeria. From delicious fermented pizza dough to all the great classic and seasonal combos , dedicated unique pizza pies and sourcing local ingredients. State of Mind provides a great vibe from an arcade, local brews, sports and kid friendly environment. Lars says come on by, celebrate their State of Mind and try a seasonal pizza!
State of Mind Public House & Pizzeria
https://www.stateofmindpublichouse.com/
State of Mind Slice House
https://www.stateofmindslicehouse.com