Next Time You See The King of Fire Pizza Truck, Ask to See Some Tricks – Charlotte Magazine

“Did you know 98% of Americans eat pizza?” Siler Chapman asks as he shows me around his commissary kitchen in Fort Mill.

I did not. But he would know. In addition to co-founding King of Fire Pizza, Siler “Si” Chapman is a founding member of the World Pizza Champions and an organizer of the World Pizza Games, held at the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas since 2005. (I didn’t know this, either.) He also holds three world titles for acrobatic pizza tossing. (Yes, it’s a real thing.) Across the hall, his office is decorated with award plaques and framed clippings from Business Insider and Pizza Today. I see he’s also set a Guinness World Record for hosting the World’s Largest Pizza Party in Tulsa, Oklahoma, last year. (Because of course he has.) 

Amber, Si’s wife of 13 years, joins us. She’s COO of King of Fire, the brick-oven pizza business they launched in 2018. In the last six years, they’ve grown from one food truck to seven, and this fall, they’re opening two brick-and-mortar locations—at The Green in uptown and in downtown Clover, South Carolina. 

“I thought we were never doing a restaurant,” Amber says with a laugh. “We didn’t want the overhead or the headache. We were going to grow this thing to eight trucks.”

“I don’t remember that conversation,” Si says. 

Amber smiles and shakes her head. “There were days where I told him, ‘We have to slow down to speed up,’” she says. “Sometimes I have to reel him back in.” 

I’ve known the Chapmans for exactly 11 minutes, but it’s clear this is a couple that can handle a lot of moving parts. They have four children under age 10 and manage 32 employees. As of August, their mobile catering service had 132 weddings on the books in 2024. In September, they planned to host King of Fire’s grand opening at The Green, which will serve uptown’s lunch crowd from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. In October, for National Pizza Month, they’ll donate $5,000 worth of pizza to Camp Care and The Boys and Girls Home in Rock Hill. And next week, Si heads to Washington, D.C., to teach a three-day intensive course at Pizza University. (Also a real thing.)

On top of that, they’re targeting a November opening for King of Fire’s Clover location, which will serve five styles of pizza: classic American wood-fired, Grandma pies, Chicago cracker-thin (aka tavern-style), New York-style, and Detroit-style. “We want it to become a destination spot, not turn-and-burn,” Amber says. “It’ll be sit-down with a full cocktail menu …” 

“And we’re bringing in world cocktail champion Niles Peacock for that,” Si adds.

But back to the pizza. How did they land on such a diverse menu? “I’ve traveled the country and to Italy for pizza competitions, and each region has their own style,” Si explains. “In Chicago, locals love cracker-thin crust. California puts pineapple on pizza. Italy is all tomatoes with barely any cheese. Old Forge, Pennsylvania does it cafeteria-style on a sheet pan—those people fiend for it.

“We knew only 5% of Charlotte understood Neapolitan pizza,” he continues. (I don’t bother interrupting to ask how he knows this and just take his word for it.) “So we came up with our own that appealed to the masses. When we first launched King of Fire, we called it ‘American wood-fired pizza.’” 

“People see the char and assume it’s burnt,” Amber tells me. 

Si nods and keeps going. “We use a Polish starter in our dough for digestibility—it’s lighter and healthier. We use high-protein flour and not San Marzano tomatoes—we use California tomatoes—and whole-milk mozzarella. I wanted to do more American toppings versus crazy Italian toppings.” 

King of Fire’s best-selling Honey Pie, topped with red sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, and honey drizzle.

So the Clover location, it seems, will reflect a culmination of this worldly pizza expertise. They’ll rotate the menu seasonally, but customers can always order their signature Honey Pie with red sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, crushed red pepper flakes, and hot honey drizzle. Seasonal selections include the Hardy Pickle, a Chick-fil-A-inspired pizza with homemade dill ranch, pickles, breaded chicken, and bacon. 

After being surrounded by pizza all day, every day, I have to know: Do they ever get sick of it? “Nope,” Si says. He then unbuttons the top of his shirt to reveal a chest tattoo that reads, “Pizza for Life.”

As we wrap up our chat, I ask about the silver trophy in the corner. Si asks for my number so he can text me a picture. Two seconds later, my phone pings with a photo of him with his award-winning pie at the Caputo Cup in Naples, Italy, in June. “I won first place in The Traditional American Division,” he says. “I did the Honey Pie 2.0. Cheese first, a sauce dollop, then pepperoni, bacon, and red pepper flakes. Normally we do the sauce first, but I did this upside down and added bacon for saltiness.” 

I’ve already mentioned the outdoor pizza oven I have at home, so before I leave, Si asks for my address so he can send me an autographed copy of The Pizza Bible. The author, Tony Gemignani, is one of his pizza mentors. “There’s some great recipes in there you have to try,” he says. “You’ll have to let me know how your kids like them.”

TAYLOR BOWLER is the lifestyle editor.