How this Haleʻiwa-based sourdough pizza spot got its start, name

Who knew that a sourdough starter could result in 10-plus different pizza flavors.

Jax Wood Fired Pizza has been serving up sourdough pizzas in Haleʻiwa for the past six years, according to director of operations Isaiah Danzick, who runs the business with his family. The Danzicks bought the business more than a year-and-a-half ago, he says.

“Our founder’s name is Michelle,” he says. “Michelle has a son and his name is Jaxon. When he was about two [years old,] he was diagnosed with autism. Michelle went on a quest to find the best food her son could eat; what she realized was that your gut affects your brain. She was like, ‘What can he eat that will help him?’”

One of Jax’s favorite foods was pizza — specifically, pepperoni pizza and chocolate milk, according to Danzick — so Michelle started doing some research.

“She found this sourdough starter and realized sourdough is actually really good for your gut health,” Danzick says. “Sourdough starter is what we make all our bread out of — all of our crusts, sandwiches, everything. She also went down the path of all-natural ingredients. Our tomato sauce is made from San Marzano tomatoes — really low acidity — and all of our ingredients are sourced locally here on the island. Everything is organic; everything is fresh.”

All of the eatery’s pizzas are cooked in a kiawe wood-fired oven that was custom built and burns between 600 and 800 degrees, according to Danzick, who says pizzas cook in usually five to six minutes.

“What makes us so different is when you bake bread at home and you get instant yeast — that’s not what we do,” he says. “Our starter is 30 years old; it’s a growing organism. We’ve had it for 15 years, but it’s been around for 30 years in total; it’s been passed down. Because it’s a sourdough starter, it doesn’t have any of those things you would find in instant yeast. Our ingredients are sourdough starter, flour, salt and water.”

Popular pizzas include the margherita ($20.95) — Italian tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, sea salt, olive oil and fresh basil — Da Kine ($24.95), which features an Italian tomato sauce base, shredded mozzarella, kalua pork, sausage, pepperoni, bacon and fresh basil; and the JAX paradise pie ($20.95). 

“Our signature pie is the JAX Paradise Pie,” Danzick says. “It has pineapple, bacon, goat cheese, red onions and balsamic glaze. The pizzas will all taste like they were made super fresh, and that’s what we’re going for.”

Other customer favorites include Greek sandwiches ($21.95) — sourdough pita bread with gyro lamb meat, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and tzatziki — and the beet and goat salad ($18.95), which features organic mixed greens, red onions, goat cheese, roasted beets, walnuts and balsamic dressing.

“We make our own tzatziki sauce in house,” Danzick says. “We have really good calzones; they’re ginormous. We also introduced cannolis this year; we have our Tour of Italy cannolis ($16.95). We make all of our ricotta filling in house as well — chocolate chip, pistachio and strawberry.”

Even though their family bought the business, Danzick says Michelle and Jax are still integral to the company.

“They’re still a huge part of what we do here,” he says. “We want Jax to be a place where families can come. We want people to come and eat with their families; we really want to bring people together with food. That’s our goal now and why we love being in Haleʻiwa. Haleʻiwa is a small town and everyone has deep roots; we love it here.” 

Stay tuned, as the business is looking to open another location this year.

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CONTACT
Jax Wood Fired Pizza
Haleʻiwa Town Center
66-197 Kamehameha Hwy., Haleʻiwa
808-744-7575
Jaxpizza.org
Instagram: @jaxwoodfiredpizza
Open daily, 11:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m.

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.