Copper oven could strike pizza gold for Lombard man

LOMBARD – Beyond the farmer selling tomatoes and blueberries, a crowd gathers.

Past booths of baked goods, fresh-squeezed lemonade and homemade jewelry, a copper dome rises from the covered row of vendors.

There, on the east end of the Glen Ellyn French Market, Jay Jones of Lombard pulls his unique pizza creations from a custom-designed, portable pizza oven.

Sunday marked Jones' second week serving slices at the Glen Ellyn market. While the 5,200-pound copper oven tends to draw a crowd, that's not why people come back.

"My grandma said she tried it last week and recommended it," said Matt Hirsh, 20, of Glen Ellyn. "It's one of the reasons my mom was able to wake me up early."

Sitting on the parking lot curb between a couple booths late Sunday morning, Hirsh enjoyed his first slice of prosciutto and arugula pizza from Copper Oven Pizza.

"I thought it was really tasty," he said. "I thought the crust was really good."

That's the idea. Jones, 57, knows the oven itself is a spectacle, but he wants the food to be what people remember.

The wood-fired clay oven is permanently stationed on a 7-by-7-foot, custom-made trailer, and stands about 7 feet tall. A shiny copper facade covers the dome-shaped exterior.

"You can see people from 100 yards away, they're drawn to it," Jones said. "It's a magnet. They've got to see what it is. Then the bonus is you get great pizza."

David Anderson, Jones' son-in-law, tosses the dough, while helpers like Jones' wife, Dee, arrange the toppings.

After Jones slides the pizza in, the thin, artisan-style pie cooks in about 90 seconds. The floor of the oven runs about 750 degrees, and the top hits 1,000 degrees, but the copper on the outside remains cool.

What emerges from the oven are creations like the artichoke and spinach pizza or Jones' favorite, Just Ducky, which features duck leg confit with caramelized onions and truffle oil.

"It is, in my mind, the most delicious thing you can have on a pizza," Jones said of his duck recipe.

Pepperoni or the basic cheese pizza are also on the menu. There's even a breakfast pizza, complete with scrambled eggs, because the market opens at 9 a.m.

Finding good help is a crucial component of any business, and Jones said he and his son-in-law, Anderson, "work seamlessly with each other."

About three years ago, the 29-year-old married Jones' only daughter, Sarah, a Glenbard East graduate and 2004 Lilac Princess. While Sarah attends graduate school in Chicago this summer, her husband is elbow deep in pizza dough with her dad.

"Seeing him as happy and excited as he is in this business, and how well it's going so far, it's really great to have that kind of relationship with an extended family member," said David Anderson, who, like his wife, teaches music in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

And business is good. In addition to Sundays in Glen Ellyn, Copper Pizza Oven is available to cater events. Jones, a former retail salesman who now has turned his passion for cooking at home into a profession, said he's booked through July and into August.

"For a new operator, I'm more than pleased with those results."

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If you go

What: Copper Oven Pizza

When: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 26

Where: Glen Ellyn French Market, Crescent Boulevard and Glenwood Avenue, Glen Ellyn

More info: Visit copperovenpizza.com or email info@copperovenpizza.com