What Re (pizza) Business Say About Our Commercial Pizza Ovens

The Orchard Ovens commercial pizza oven team has had a fantastic start to 2026, with much of this down to what we call re(pizza) business.

This is where we have a customer who has been so wowed by their first Valoriani commercial pizza oven that they have decided, when it’s time for a change of look or location, that there’s simply nothing else to choose but another Valoriani.

This has been the case with the hugely prestigious London-based dining establishment The River Café, located on the River Thames at Thames Wharf, Hammersmith. Orchard Ovens first fitted a commercial pizza oven there in 2008, with the bright pink oven being real pizza oven eye candy and featuring in many a publicity shot for the venue.  

A wood-fired oven has always been centre-stage at The River Café and, in 2008, the eatery upgraded to a Valoriani wood-fired oven. Dezeen magazine, at the time, stated, “A notable addition is a new wood burning oven, dominating the dining room and kitchen. Manufactured by the Italian firm of Valoriani, this type of oven, made in Reggello, in the hills of Tuscany 25km southeast of Florece – is key to the preparation of the River Café’s many dishes.”

Fast-forward to January 2026, 18 years later, and that remained the case but with a new oven. On owner Ruthie Rogers’ podcast, she noted that two things arrived at the Michelin-starred restaurant when it reopened after Christmas – a new wood oven and the Italian vegetable agretti. Notably, she did not refer to the oven as a pizza oven – and with good reason. A Valoriani oven is so much more than that, being a wood oven that can cook absolutely everything, in a truly authentic Italian manner.

The longevity of the original oven says it all about Valoriani as a manufacturer. Despite the wood oven being in constant use at The River Café, cooking a huge variety of dishes, it had been in situ for 18 years and still not reached end of life.

As one reviewer at OneDishCloser.com noted in 2016, “The wood oven has touched everything, giving the tender lamb an added depth of flavour, rendering the onions sweet and sticky and those potatoes, oh my.”

The venue always attracts the rich and famous, who settle for nothing short of perfection. TV royalty such as Richard Osman, politicians such as Kamala Harris and Dame Jacinda Ardern, and other A-listers all feature on its socials. The backdrop to many of their images is the pink Valoriani oven, which helped brighten Ruthie Rogers’ mood, on a cold grey day post-Christmas, when she walked back into her eatery after its refurb.

Of course, Jamie Oliver trained at The River Café and was one of Orchard Ovens’ very first customers. Orchard Ovens’ Andrew Manciocchi fitted Jamie’s garden oven over 20 years ago and the company even got a credit in his cookbook of the time.

In 2026, we couldn’t be happier to have equipped The River Café with another oven that is now the workhorse behind an exciting menu that changes daily but which makes great use of the oven’s capacities.

A sample menu on the restaurant’s website features dishes such as Pollo Arrosto – chicken cooked in Valpolicello and served with Tuscan roast potatoes. There is also Fegato di Vitello (calves liver) cooked with pancetta and herbs, alongside roast pumpkin. The menu also highlights how fish can also be cooked in the commercial ‘pizza’ oven – or wood fired oven, as we prefer to call it. The Sogliola al Forno dish is a whole slip-sole, which is wood roasted with black olives, marjoram and slow-cooked Florence fennel.

There are some true tastes of Tuscany in there, cooked in an oven that has been lovingly shaped by undisputed Tuscan artisans and fire-brick specialists – the Valoriani family. Valoriani’s wood ovens are manufactured from unique ‘cotto’ clay, with its remarkable firing up and heat retention properties. This is coupled with first-class design and insulation. With these top-quality manufacturing ethics behind the brand, it is easy to see why discerning venues have only one name on their lips when they buy an oven, with that being ‘Valoriani’.

Do head to The River Café to see the oven for yourself, or give us a call and find out how we could make a wood fired oven the centre piece of your own commercial or restaurant kitchen. You too could have an oven that ‘touches’ everything on your menu, imparting smoky depths of flavour that have no equal and creating food textures to die for.

Call us on 07743 847647, to discover more about our commercial pizza oven – or wood oven – range.

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Editors notes

Orchard Ovens is the domestic and commercial pizza oven supplier in the UK of Valoriani, based in Reggello, Tuscany - the manufacturer of Italy's hugely respected Valoriani pizza ovens, known as the Maserati of pizza ovens and the kings of clay. These ovens are made from superb refractory clay - cotto clay - found in the family's quarry and unique, thanks to having just the right alumina. This allows Valoriani ovens to heat up quickly and retain heat superbly, bring huge advantages to homeowners, as well as restaurant owners, hotels, pubs, mobile caterers, pizzerias, takeaways and more.

Orchard Ovens supplies some of Britain's best-known restaurants and chefs, whilst it is also a specialist creator of outdoor kitchens and wood-fired oven builds for the rich and famous, as well as everyday homeowners wishing to add value to their home and enjoy an outdoor lifestyle to the full.