Rise Woodfire: A story in resilience: 2nd San Mateo location has become a success

Zahedi’s second location, Rise Woodfire in San Mateo, opened in October 2020 — in the midst of a global pandemic that permanently shuttered a third of all restaurants in California. Due to pandemic mandates, dining halls were at a quarter of their capacity, and those without outdoor seating areas were even less popular. For many restaurant owners, this was the end.

Zahedi and his wife, Susan Payrovi, already owned Rise Pizzeria in Burlingame, which they opened several years prior. Facing a difficult decision, they decided to double down. The pair were trying to build something big for the San Mateo County community, something that would strengthen their neighbors amidst strife and tragedy, and purchased a second location at 2 N. B St. 

Pizza isn’t new for Zahedi, who grew up in Orange County working with his father’s pizza shop franchise. He then pursued a career in management as a self-proclaimed “numbers guy,” working in finance for more than a decade in the Los Angeles area.

“You’re just pushing paper,” Zahedi said about his time in finance. “Sign this. OK, made more money. Did I change the world? No.”

The money was steady, but Zahedi began to lose interest in finance after 10 years in the industry.

“If it wasn’t creative, it would be boring, which is why I left finance,” Zahedi said.

He was drawn back to pizza after having an especially memorable pie from PitFire Pizza in Los Angeles and bought a large wood-fire pizza oven — which he named Lucy — in his backyard. On weekends, he tested dough recipes, experimenting with fermentation and feeding neighbors who stopped by for slices.

That passion became Burlingame’s Rise Pizzeria, a small, family-friendly spot that showed Zahedi and his family that owning a pizzeria could work. With the success of the first restaurant, Zahedi’s wife began to believe in the vision of a second restaurant.

“He was looking at me like, ‘What does the food have to be? What does labeling have to be? What percent?’ Then I was like, ‘Wow, he’s kind of dialed down to a degree that I would never even think of,’” Payrovi said.

The San Mateo location, with its immense size and remodeling requirements, proved to be a challenge for Zahedi and his family. But then he saw potential for a space no other restaurant in San Mateo could boast.

They demolished the second floor, creating a cavernous ambiance in the main dining area, installed a massive wood-fire oven and created a rustic vibe with dark wooden elements. Borrowing money to make the restaurant happen was a gamble for Zahedi and his family.

“We opened during COVID, and then we were quickly shut down,” he said.

With 200 seats and no patio, there was no way they could survive solely on takeout. So the family made another gamble: build outdoor seating in the middle of a lockdown.

“Do we spend even more money?” Zahedi said. “It was a little bit gut wrenching, but we did it.”

The patio ended up becoming the most popular part of the restaurant. As restrictions lifted, the outdoor seating filled up first, and as people returned to indoor spaces, the restaurant began filling regularly.

Zahedi is still very much a “numbers guy,” a quality that helped his restaurant through the pandemic and subsequent supply chain issues.

“There’s no way you can run a restaurant today without being completely in tune with every cost factor,” he said. “There’s no room for phantom expenses.”

Now, five years later, Zahedi and his family have put these hurdles behind them. On a typical evening, commuters step off the train and grab a drink at the bar while families share rotisserie chicken and five-rise dough pizzas. Last year, they opened their third restaurant in Santa Clara, offering several dining spaces for community events and parties.

For Zahedi, pizza was about building something creative, communal and resilient enough to survive the biggest challenges.

“We really wanted to build a sense of place for the community to come to,” Zahedi said. “People coming in and bumping into each other — that’s what we love.”