Viral Pizza Pop-Up Is a Hit, Chef Seeks Solo Storefront

Site of Ferney’s Pizza, 832 E. Clarke St. Photo from Google Maps.

Ferney’s Pizza in Riverwest began as a way for owner Brian Cripps to support his growing family. He launched the business in the back of Clarke Foods on the corner of E. Clarke and N. Bremen streets in May, hoping to serve 20 pizzas per day.

To his surprise, Ferney’s was an instant success.

Since day one, Ferney’s has seen daily lines out the door. Cripps said some customers are willing to wait an hour for a slice. His original goal of selling 20 pies per day was quickly achieved — as of October, he is up to making 200 slices per hour. Ferney’s Instagram account has gained nearly 5,000 followers since launching and sees more than 200,000 viewers per month.

“I’ve worked in restaurants for 25 years, and I’ve never worked anywhere that, from the day you open the doors, you can’t get a breath,” Cripps said in an interview with Urban Milwaukee.

Cripps has been operating the business under Clarke Foods’ licenses, but he recently submitted license applications of his own. He hopes this gets him a step closer to his ultimate goal of opening a brick-and-mortar storefront.

“We’re pizza people now,” Cripps said. “[The Clarke Foods location] is a good test of the concept. We’re going to keep pushing forward and are looking for our own storefront in the neighborhood.”

Cripps’ culinary experience comes from years of working in fine dining around the country. He helped open Atelier Crenn, a three-star Michelin restaurant in San Francisco, and has worked for several “big-name chefs” such as Ludo Lefebvre. He worked at Tre Rivali in the Third Ward as executive chef after moving to Milwaukee in 2021, and in 2023 appeared on Food Network’s “Beat Bobby Flay” series.

“My whole life, I’ve tried so hard to be a great chef and work in the best restaurants, but it always felt like I was clawing at something,” Cripps said. “This time, I decided I was going to do things my way. I’m going to make pizza the way I want to in a way that makes sense for the neighborhood.”

Classic cheese and pepperoni are offered alongside specialty slices on Ferney’s menu. Standouts include the “Brew Crew,” which features bratwurst, giardiniera, red onion, mozzarella and pecorino over red sauce, and the “Bremen & Clarke,” which showcases a nut-free pesto with burrata over a spicy vodka sauce.

In addition to the menu’s mainstays, Cripps develops a new specialty slice each week. As the season changed to autumn, Cripps said people can expect fall-themed pies to hit the menu.

Though Cripps uses Mondays as his “inspiration day” to develop Ferney’s weekly special, he said people in the community also offer him fresh ideas. A loyal customer who recently returned from a trip to Tunisia gifted Cripps a “30-pound bag of spices” that included “harissa, za’atar, saffron and coriander,” he notes, and asked him to develop a special.

“It’s so cool what people do for us there,” Cripps said. “We have really immersed ourselves in the community; I talk to every single person who comes in. That’s not something I am accustomed to working in big restaurants.”

Ferney’s Pizza is open Sunday from noon to 2 p.m. (but opens at 11 a.m. if there is a noon Packers game), Thursday from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Friday through Saturday from noon to 2 p.m. On Sundays, Ferney’s offers a six-slice special for $40. The pizzeria closes once the day’s slices are sold out.

Existing members must be signed in to see the interactive map. Sign in.