A 24-year-old chef from Wilmslow, Cheshire, is aiming to make the best pizza in Manchester. Brad Brookbanks, who runs the mobile pizza business Biga Pizza, is already building a name across Greater Manchester, taking his homemade dough and Neapolitan-style pizzas to events, weddings and pop-ups.
From pot washer to pizza maker
Brad's career in kitchens began as a pot washer at a restaurant in Wilmslow. From there, he worked his way up to the stoves before discovering the craft that would eventually become his speciality: pizza.
He moved to Wood Fire Smoke in Wilmslow, where he began making pizzas, before helping to set up and manage a restaurant in Alderley Edge. It was there, and through his time working in Manchester pizzerias, that his knowledge of the craft developed.
One particular influence was L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele, a pizzeria Brad describes as producing some of the best pizza in the world. He visited several times, absorbing techniques and ideas that would eventually shape his own approach.
“I got into cheffing when I was younger,” he says. “I started as a pot wash and worked my way onto a chef.”
Building Biga Pizza
Now, rather than working in somebody else’s kitchen, Brad is building something of his own. That business is Biga Pizza. The name comes from biga, an ancient Italian bread-making technique that Brad uses to create his dough. The process involves preparing a fermented mixture in advance, helping to produce the distinctive light and airy crust that has become central to his pizzas.
“They’re really light on the stomach,” he says. “You’re not in a food coma afterwards. You can carry on about your day.”
There is nothing conventional about the way Brad has launched the business, either. After putting some money aside and finally getting his car licence, having spent the previous five years riding motorbikes, he bought the equipment he needed and began taking Biga Pizza to events and local cafés.
His mobile setup includes a Gozney oven, three tables and a gazebo. From there, he has started building a name across Greater Manchester, generally travelling within around an hour of home.
Events, weddings and community nights
The business operates across private events and public pop-ups. At private events, customers can book Brad to cater for occasions ranging from smaller gatherings to weddings. At public events, he works with venues that can make their money from drinks while Biga Pizza provides the food, creating what he describes as a community night.
The scale of the bookings can vary dramatically, from around 14 people to more than 130. Weddings have become an increasingly important part of the business, with Brad already taking bookings.
For someone still at the beginning of his journey, catering for somebody's wedding is a responsibility he does not take lightly.
“It feels great,” he says. “It’s definitely a bit nerve-wracking to be serving someone’s wedding, but it’s such an honour as well. It's a piece of someone's life that they're never going to forget.”
“You’ve got the opportunity of feeding all the guests. What’s more wholesome? That’s everyone’s favourite part of the wedding, at least the food.”
Community support and future dreams
Behind the scenes, Brad is still very much doing things himself. Biga Pizza does not have a large team of chefs. Instead, Brad relies on a small circle of friends and family for help with service when events require it. His girlfriend, Grace, has also played a significant role in helping the business take shape, creating the signage for Biga Pizza.
The support has extended beyond his immediate circle, too. Brad says the response from local people has been particularly rewarding, with familiar faces recognising him at events and stopping to see what he has built.
“It’s nice to sort of reconnect with people,” he says. “I’ve got something to show. I’ve got to build something I’ve built, basically.”
Brad was born in the north-east before moving to the Wilmslow area when he was around four or five. He attended Wilmslow High School and grew up locally, even working at the JD Sports that used to be on Grove Street. Now, he is bringing his own business back into the community where he grew up.
There is no family history in Italian food behind it, either. Brad is English, with his passion for Neapolitan pizza coming entirely from the people he has worked with and learned from. Some of those lessons have even meant learning Italian, or more specifically, Neapolitan dialect, to communicate with pizza chefs who refuse to speak English.
“I’ve got a lot of Neapolitan friends,” he says. “A lot of the pizza chefs that I’ve learned from don’t speak English. They refuse to learn English.”
For Brad, the learning process is clearly far from finished. The next step is to keep expanding Biga Pizza's presence at events, weddings and pop-ups while developing the reputation of the food itself.
“The big dream is to be the number one pizza in the Manchester area,” he says. “I want to bring the best pizza to the UK.”
For now, though, the focus is much closer to home: firing up the oven, stretching the dough and turning up at the next event.
