Having trained under 12-time World Pizza Champion (featured on Food Network) and owner of Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco Tony Gemignani, brick oven pizza, served alfresco, is perfected in Arizona—by dentist Dr. Eric Curtis. Dr. Curtis holds an Italian government certification as a pizzaiolo (pizza chef). Being somewhat of a pizza connoisseur myself, I was eager to sample one of these famous pies from Safford, AZ that I’d hard so much of over the years. The pizza, and Dr. Curtis, did not disappoint. Incredible. More impressive, Dr. Curtis actually built the wood-fired brick oven that’s featured in the video. If I remember right, it gets to about 900-1200 degrees Fahrenheit on the deck. Dr. Curtis makes a point to make a pilgrimage to Pizza Napoletana anytime he finds himself back in San Francisco.
Dr. Eric earned an AA from Eastern Arizona College. He also holds a BA in economics, with honors in Spanish, from the University of Arizona, and an MA in English from Northern Arizona University. He graduated in 1985 from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific (San Francisco), and was a……
Dr. Eric earned an AA from Eastern Arizona College. He also holds a BA in economics, with honors in Spanish, from the University of Arizona, and an MA in English from Northern Arizona University. He graduated in 1985 from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific (San Francisco), and was a…
Dr. Eric earned an AA from Eastern Arizona College. He also holds a BA in economics, with honors in Spanish, from the University of Arizona, and an MA in English from Northern Arizona University. He graduated in 1985 from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific (San Francisco), and was a dental polyclinic resident at the Centre Hopitalier Universitaire Vaudois, University of Lausanne, Switzerland. Dr. Eric speaks Spanish and French.
In private practice in Safford since 1987, Dr. Eric is a Master of the Academy of General Dentistry (MAGD) and an adjunct associate professor in the Dugoni School’s Department of Dental Practice. He is past president of both the American Association of Dental Editors and the American Academy of the History of Dentistry, and a past member of the American Dental Association’s Council on Communications. He is currently editor of the journal of the Arizona Dental Association and associate editor for the Academy of General Dentistry. He is past president of the Arizona Academy of General Dentistry. He was awarded the AGD’s Lifelong Learning and Service Award in 2007.
Author of four books and more than 450 articles, Dr. Eric received the Hayden-Harris Award from the American Academy of the History of Dentistry, the Medallion of Distinction from University of the Pacific, and the American Dental Association’s Distinguished Editor Award. He is a fellow of the American College of Dentists. He was also elected to fellowship in the International College of Dentists, Academy of Dentistry International, and the Pierre Fauchard Academy. Dr. Eric was named Dentist of the Year by the Arizona Dental Association in both 1999 and 2004.
Dr. Eric was the attending dentist for the 2012 Mainpat Multidisciplinary Global Leaning Project, College of Health and Human Services, Northern Arizona University, Mainpat, India. He is a former member of the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners and currently serves as a chief examiner with the Western Regional Examining Board (WREB) dental licensing examination agency.