It was 1985...
Chuck Woodstock always wanted to open a pizzeria in Davis. After all, he had family nearby in Woodland, and he felt that Davis came closest to the type of atmosphere he loved in his hometown of Corvallis, Oregon. His desire was to create a fun, student-oriented atmosphere and serve up a classic line of pizzas that were better than any they’d tried anywhere else.
In 1985, he and his partner, Mike Chew, found an ideal location in the historic core of downtown Davis. They bought a building that was almost 100 years old and spent hundreds of hours transforming it into a college-oriented pizza parlor. When they discovered old brick behind the wall in the upstairs loft, they painstakingly removed the plaster to expose a wall that has become synonymous with Woodstock’s. Then they spent more hours installing our trademark tongue-in-groove wood along the walls, as well as on the booth seating.
The store was almost ready to open when Chuck and Chew flew a private plane from California to Las Vegas. Sadly, they never made it back – the remains of their plane were found near Mt. Whitney in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
It was a horrible setback, but fortunately, Chuck and Chew had already hired a General Manager for the Davis store – Tammy Rumpel. She persevered through the tragedy, and opened Woodstock’s Pizza in January 1986. Chuck’s intuition about Davis had been right all along – Woodstock’s was a success from the very beginning!
Much of Woodstock’s success was due to the formula that Chuck and Chew set before their unexpected deaths. One of Chuck’s innovations was to put sauce in the folded-over crust. He insisted on using the freshest, best-tasting toppings he could find anywhere. He also insisted on putting more toppings on the pizza than any of his competitors did. Ideally, you should get a taste of every topping in each bite of a Woodstock’s pizza. Their motto was – WORK HARD, HAVE FUN!
Dee Clark, our present manager, started with Woodstock’s in June 1991 and became General REAL ingredientsManager in 1992. She still maintains many of the traditions begun by Chuck and Chew. The dough is still handmade each day, we still use Chuck’s secret sauce recipe, we still load on the toppings, and we teach every employee to make each pizza as if it were for their best friend.
Since the very beginning Woodstock’s has had a policy of supporting numerous campus and community organizations by hosting fundraisers in our restaurant. Through the years, we’ve given away thousands of dollars to local nonprofit groups.
We also encourage group business, knowing that pizza is a great way to eat together. You might even see the MTV Sorority Girls partying with us!
With our ties to UC-Davis, we have tens of thousands of Woodstock’s alumni who still make it a point to visit us whenever they’re in town. We’re also a great stopping-off point for anyone traveling the I-80 between the Bay area and Tahoe.
Woodstock’s has sister locations in Chico (near Chico State), San Luis Obispo (CalPoly), Isla Vista (UC Santa Barbara) and San Diego (SDSU). Jeff Ambrose, who began as a delivery driver for Chuck in Corvallis and eventually worked his way up to President of the company, became owner of the stores in 2001. The original Woodstock’s Pizza in Corvallis, Oregon is owned by Chuck’s wife, Carol Lee Woodstock.
And now, in February of 2010 Woodstock's proudly announces the latest edition to the family: Woodstock's Pacific Beach!
Mission
Our mission is to earn loyal customers and team members who uniquely regard Woodstock’s as the Ultimate Pizza Experience.
To earn the distinction of being the Ultimate Pizza Experience we will:
• Prepare every customer’s meal with individual attention.
• Use the freshest, best tasting ingredients.
• Consistently create outstanding, unique pizzas and accompaniments that are widely-regarded
as the best ever, anywhere!
• Treat each and every customer with friendliness, respect and courtesy.
• Provide outstanding value that keeps customers returning with uncommon frequency.
• Be recognized as a fun and outstanding place to work.
• Provide a fun-filled festive atmosphere.
Woodstock’s will encourage our team members to work hard and have fun.
Woodstock’s will be regarded as a reputable, well-run company by all of our business partners and team members.
Woodstock’s will strengthen and give back to the communities we serve by fostering partnerships with local non-profit organizations.
Awards
Voted “Yolo's Best Pizza" - Davis
Enterprise Readers’ Poll 2005 & 2008
Voted “Best Pizza" - California Aggie, Best of Davis 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
& 2011 Readers’ Poll
"Award of Quality" by the National Academy of Restaurant
Evaluation.
–The Union Tribune
