Grant Arons — Inizio and Finale — the Empire Grows

Written By Peter Reinhart

Tuesday, 05 May 2026 Pizza Quest Webisodes | Uncategorized | Webisodes

Welcome back to Pizza Quest!

One of Charlotte’s most successful pizzaeria operators, Grant Arons, is back with us as he is about to open, five minutes from my house, the fifth location of Inizio, his Neapolitan wood-fired concept that has captivated the city. This is in addition to the opening of a New York-(ish) Style pizzeria called Finale. Grant explains it all, including his vision and business model, in this revealing conversation.

Note: for those who have my book, Pizza Quest: My Never-Ending Search for the PerfectPizza, you will note that one of Grant’s signature pizzas, The Pistachio Pesto Neapolitan, is on page 83, and it is one of the most duplicated recipes by readers of the book. One look at the photo on page 84 will show you why.

So sit back and enjoy this conversation with Grant Arons, who is still in the early to middle stages of growing his pizza empire.

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Pizza Quest is a site dedicated to the exploration of artisanship in all forms, wherever we find it, but especially through the literal and metaphorical image of pizza. As we share our own quest for the perfect pizza we invite all of you to join us and share your journeys too. We have discovered that you never know what engaging roads and side paths will reveal themselves on this quest, but we do know that there are many kindred spirits out there, passionate artisans, doing all sorts of amazing things. These are the stories we want to discover, and we invite you to jump on the proverbial bus and join us on this, our never ending pizza quest.