One on One With Joe Cave, Founder of the Pizza Cave: A Renaissance Pizzaiolo

Joe Cave is a Pizzaiolo by trade. Yet as the owner and driving force behind the very popular The Pizza Cave on 290 West (and the last stop on our Pizza Corridor) he is a man of many diverse talents and interests. I finally caught up with him a few weeks ago for this interview

RB: First off, Joe, let me congratulate you on the success of The Pizza Cave. I first met you when you had your first store in downtown Dripping Springs.

JC: Thanks Rob. But if I recall you didn’t like the baked ziti.

RB: True, but I loved the pizza. It had a great East Coast vibe with artisanal craftsmanship. And then you had to let me try the Piggie Chowder!

JC: (Laughs) Yeah, we do love that around here.

RB: I know your customers love it too! So tell our readers about Piggie Chowder.

JC: Think of New England clam chowder without the clams and with Italian sausage instead. Our customers totally love it. Some come in and order a couple of quarts.

RB: Indeed, I still remember the afternoon you brought out that first cup! So how did a guy from El Paso wind up opening an East coast style pizza joint in Austin?

JC: Well, I worked at several restaurants before and during college at Angelo State.

RB: That seems to be a familiar refrain with many restaurant owners we’ve spoken to. I guess that first taste of the business can be contagious.

JC: Yeah it can be. I had a lot of family influences there and many great meals while I was growing up. My mom is an awesome cook. I have family recipes that I still use.

RB: What was your major in college?

JC: Finance. My dad said I needed a business degree.

RB: So balancing the books has never been a problem!

JC: No, not when I finally had something to balance. I was offered a voice scholarship to Baylor but decided against it.

RB: That’s amazing. Voice?

JC: Yeah, I can sing a little.

RB: So are you going to put a music system into the Cave and perform now and then?

JC: Too busy right now but maybe at some point. I’ve also written a lot of songs.

RB: That’s so cool. And you also play guitar?

JC: I do.

RB. Me too. We’ll have to jam sometime. (Laughing)

RB: When we first met you briefly mentioned that in addition to owning a pizza restaurant you also developed financial software? That sounds like quite a journey!

JC: That’s sure been the case. I was a software geek long before college so it was a logical extension for me. I had some great accomplishments along the way of which I’m very proud. It also led me to New Jersey which is where my wife Sue is from.

I got to try some amazing pizza joints while I was there as well. There’s just something indescribable about pizza from that area. There was one called Spinners that was our favorite.

RB: I know what you mean. I grew up in New Haven, CT, home of the world famous Pepe’s Pizza. Those amazing pies still linger in my memory. There was something about the pizza making skills of those guys that got off the boats from Naples four generations ago.

JC: You better believe that!

RB: So when the opportunity to open a similarly influenced pizza place in Dripping Springs arose you took it?

JC: Sure. I’d met Sue in Austin where she got a graduate degree in Architecture at UT So we had ties here. We opened The Pizza Cave in Dripping Springs and also one in Boerne, but pretty soon I was working 12 hour days.

RB: Be careful what you wish for, right?

JC: Yeah, I guess so. But I still really enjoyed it. The rollout in Dripping Springs was slow and steady. Locals were not familiar with the types of pizza we were making but they gradually warmed to it. We’ve built a very loyal customer base.

RB: Most East Coast pizza joints pretty much just offer pizza and maybe clams on the half shell. But you chose to add various pasta dishes.

JC: We did, There were just too many good recipes from home. Including the ziti. (Laughs)

RB: So things were going along pretty smoothly at that point, and then the flood!

JC: Yeah, that was awful. We had three feet of water in there. The only silver lining was that we’d been thinking of expanding and a space opened down 290. It was perfect for us. Lots of room for the ovens and more kitchen space. It gave us much more seating capacity. And there was a deck outside with great Hill Country views.

RB: So welcome to the new Pizza Cave!

JC: That’s right! And the response has been great. We’re getting a lot of our regulars from the local area and people from all over Austin.

RB: You’ve added new items to the menu as well. Like the Piadas and the Creamy Pepper Soup.

JC: Yeah, we have. The Piadas are flatbreads that are stuffed with a variety of ingredients. They’re very popular in North Central Italy. Our customers love them.

RB: Add me to that list. Perhaps an analogy for them would be an Italian Gyro.

JC: You could say that.

RB: And about the Creamy Pepper Soup?

JC: With the Creamy Pepper Soup we’ve taken out the seeds, removing most of the heat but retaining the flavor. That’s gone over well, too. Sometimes we combine it with the Piggie Chowder.

RB: Then you have the Creamy Pepper Piggie Chowder. Try saying that fast three times in a row! (Laughs)

RB: And the new Pizza Cave is very much a family operation?

JC: Yeah, we’re all involved. My sons are here, my wife does all the baking and she’s very talented. It’s hard work but great fun as well.

RB: You seem to have a real bond with your customers. What are some of your favorite stories?

JC: There’s quite a few Rob. How much time do I have? (Laughs) You know, a lot of long haul truckers drive Highway 290. One day this gigantic truck pulls into our parking lot. The driver comes in and eats: he has a Spelunker Pizza, some Piggie Chowder and then he gets a bunch of food for the rest of his trip.

Not too long after that another rig pulls in and it’s a trucker who heard about us on his CB radio. And so it’s gone. Also earlier this year during the “snowmageddon” week we had a few people come in from the adjacent hotel.

They liked our food and pretty soon we were getting a whole bunch of people from the hotel. And then some of them, after they’d gone home, made a point to come back on their next visit to Austin. We love that.

RB: I’ll bet. You know Joe, you have a heck of a story, Would it be fair to say, given your diverse background and interests, that you’re kind of a renaissance guy?

JC: I don’t know Rob. I mean that term gets kicked around a lot. Well, perhaps. (Laughs) You’re being kind.

RB: Not really Joe. Not really at all.