- Name: Chris Balthrop
- Position: Catering and vending manager, pizza maker
- Location: Lupi’s Pizza
Chris Balthrop tosses dough Wednesday in Lupi’s Pizza.- First job: Dishwasher and busboy at Mount Vernon
- Best part of the job: “Making people’s days better through preparing them good food. It makes you feel like you’re doing something worthwhile or productive for people other than yourself. Food is a central part of all our lives. If you can provide somebody with a better day by making them some awesome food, that means a lot, I think. I like throwing the dough. That’s the most fun part of it.”
- Secret to throwing the dough: “Lots of practice. Working with the dough as opposed to working against it; developing a oneness with the dough.”
- Worst part of the job: “I don’t like being slow. And there are occasional annoying pizzas or toppings, people putting too many toppings on the pizza or whatnot. That can get annoying … An annoying pizza order is one with everything on it. We have some people who will literally order everything and we have close to 40 toppings.”
- What he’s learned: “I’ve learned a lot about interpersonal relationships and dealing with the public – dealing with people, in general, whether it be employees or customers. I enjoy dealing with people too. I’ve developed a closer relationship with food, more appreciation for food and the food service industry.”
- How to make a career of it: “Have a lot of dedication and passion for what you’re doing. Starting at the bottom and putting the building blocks together. Exploring the industry. Just working at it, having passion for it, a desire to get better at it. It’s something anybody can do. Not being intimidated by it, because a lot of people do view the pizza throwing as something more difficult than it is or out of their grasp, but if you take it step by step, anybody can do the job.”
Contact Holly Leber at hleber@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6391. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/hollyleber.