Meet Isaiah and Colleen, the duo behind Pizza by Ruffin, Seattle’s first Black-owned pizzeria.
This power couple is serving up more than just a slice of Roman-style pizza – they’re dishing out a taste of community, culture, and passion in every delicious pie that emerges from their brick-and-mortar shop in South Lake Union.
With roots in Fort Collins, Colorado, where their mobile wood-fired pizza operation, Project Pizza, first took off, Isaiah and Colleen have transplanted their vision to the heart of Seattle.
From the spicy kick of their Somali lamb pizza to the fresh, locally-sourced ingredients that top each pie, every bite at Pizza by Ruffin is a celebration of flavor and heritage. And with their commitment to halal meats, gluten-free options, and handmade dough and sauce, Isaiah and Colleen are making gourmet pizza accessible to all.
Sit back, grab a slice, and get ready to be inspired by Isaiah and Colleen’s story of love, pizza, and the pursuit of a vision.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What kind of pizza are you serving at Pizza by Ruffin?
Isaiah: We serve Roman-style pizza, which is also known as “pizza al taglio”, which in English means “pizza by the cut”.
How did you get started making pizza?
Isaiah: It all started when we used to work for another employer together, and I had this really cool idea that I pitched to the company about raising money for nonprofit things like school gardens. Things didn’t work out with that company, but then one day I called my lovely wife and was like, “hey, there’s a school bus here – I think we should get it.” That’s how Project Pizza was born, which is our mobile wood fire pizza operation.
How do you convert a school bus into a pizzeria?
Isaiah: We’ve had two buses. The first one we cut a hole out the side of it and put a pizza oven in it. Then for the second one, we built a 2,000 pound oven inside of it.
One thing we pride ourselves on is doing everything that we can ourselves, even if we mess up or have to do it multiple times. Learning the process and understanding all the ins and outs of it has made us better entrepreneurs.
You recently relocated to Seattle from Fort Collins, Colorado. What drew you to Seattle?
Colleen: I think what drew us to Seattle was mostly looking to expand from being in a food truck to having a brick and mortar. We felt we had outgrown Fort Collins, and so we plotted out where we wanted to go. We had a couple cities to check out, and Seattle was a blend of everything we wanted, starting with more ethnic diversity, public transportation, closer to an airport and a way better food scene. We came here four times before we moved. We also went to a Sync Seattle event which is a Black networking group event.
Isaiah: A lot of people say Seattle doesn’t have much ethnic diversity especially when it comes to us more melanated folks, but coming from Fort Collins, we’re talking like 10-20x what was there. I have Black neighbors now!
What are people saying about your pizza?
Isaiah: It’s been really interesting. A lot of times I make a pizza that I think is going to crush it, and it really doesn’t. I was really surprised that people love the spicy! We used to do a spicy lamb with a Somali stew on it. We have an Ethiopian Dorowat pizza that people are asking for. The vegetable and vegans ones have been a hit, like the radicchio and fennel.
A lot of people are really surprised at how light it is. One guy came in and really examined the pizza, he was like, “that fluff and crunch was perfect”. The bottom was nice and crispy, but through the middle the pizza is light and airy. That’s something we really strive for – the fluff and crunch.
What’s the inspiration behind the flavors?
Isaiah: I draw my inspiration from three things, and one is my background as a chef. I love to experiment with different flavors. I’ve cooked all over the world, from Denmark, Iceland, to Italy, so I like to incorporate some elements of that. The Black Diaspora is really important for me to represent on food. One of our staples is called “The Fun Guy” and it has a Jamaican curry on it, which always goes over super well.
Pepperoni is always going to be on the menu, and our pepperoni is halal – it’s turkey, chicken, and beef. All of our meats that are not pork are always halal, and that’s really important to us.
How did you two meet, and what is it like working together?
Colleen: We met at a previous job in Colorado, and I’d say working together is super awesome. Our dynamic is really great. Working on the food truck is close quarters, and we’d be bumping into each other, like something might get missed, and it’s just like we’re always very respectful, and there’s never hard feelings.
Isaiah: When it comes to like relationships with people I’m close to, whether it’s like a romantic or platonic, if I feel like we can’t work together or hang out with each other all day, I’m like, why are we even friends? I want to be around people who inspire me, I inspire them, and we just enjoy each other. It’s great that our relationship works that way, and we spend all day, all the time together. I don’t even think about it. I never think about getting tired or wanting more or less. It’s just what life is.
What should a first-time customer expect when they come in?
Isaiah: When you walk in, you’ll see a table full of pizzas, and if you don’t, that means you missed out. So try to come in early – if you can come by 11:30, you’ll definitely get what you’re looking for.
We have a wide variety of vegetarian and vegan pizzas, we also do gluten-free on Wednesdays. All our meats are halal (except for our pork products). All the dough and sauce is made by hand, and even our tables were built by us.
Colleen: Our ingredients, our toppings are very intentional. We go to the farmer’s market every Sunday, and that determines what several of our pizzas are going to be.
We love knowing our fishermen, ranchers, farmers – the more the better.
What are your hours and when should people come by?
Our hours are 11-4, Monday through Friday – but on Tuesday and Wednesday we stay open until 7pm. On Tuesdays we do this thing called “Tapas Tuesday” – if you come in between 4 and 7 and you buy a wine or beer, you get some little bites. On Wednesday, we do 30% off all wines!
Why is it important for people to #SpendLikeItMatters?
Isaiah: Spending your money locally is important, but where you spend it locally is just as important.
One way cities and communities thrive is by recirculating energy, and particularly financial energy. So by keeping your money here, it stays here, it supports better schools, better roads, better services for everyone involved.
Colleen: I feel like the small business energy in Seattle has been very welcoming and we’ve met a lot of amazing people, and we love to support them.
How can the community support you?
Colleen: I think just spreading the word that we’re here – tag us, come in, take pictures. We’re open and we’re ready to have a good time, and we have a lot of pizza.
Isaiah: We’re the first black-owned pizzeria in Washington State and we don’t want to be the last. So we definitely want to share the love.
