Spring 2024 | Edible Notables

Pizza Our Hearts

Sierra-based master baker and sourdough expert shares knowledge and pizza.

Pablo Puluke Giet has baked himself into a niche.

Operating under the business name Von Pablo, Giet is a certified German master baker based in Truckee. He creates one-of-a-kind sourdough pizza and pizza dough that he sells at the Riverside Farmers Market in Reno as well as Truckee and Tahoe City farmers’ markets and Sierra events, such as Made in Tahoe and Snowfest. He also cooks up his specialty pies for events hosted at the Rainbow Lodge in Soda Springs.

Giet bills himself as the only choice in the Greater Reno-Tahoe area for those seeking real sourdough from a real baker.

“There are not many people in the whole USA that can match my knowledge and experience,” he says.

Making of an Expert
Born in Germany, Giet has spent more than 20 years perfecting his craft. Starting at age 15, Giet trained for four days per week and went to school for one before becoming certified at age 18. From there he moved around a bit, working for a little bakery in Honaunau on the Big Island of Hawaii for two years. He then moved back to Germany to get his master’s degree in baking at German Bakers Academy, followed by a bachelor’s degree in business economy at the IHK Academy, before consulting for bakeries, flour companies, and mill manufacturers.

A commitment to quality is one piece of what Giet says sets his products apart.

“If I can’t achieve the highest quality possible, I don’t proceed,” he says.

Giet specialized in fermentation, fresh milling, sourdough, and whole grain baking, showcasing an extraordinary skill set that was coveted at the Artisan Baking Center in Petaluma, where he became one of the head instructors in 2018. Love eventually led him to move to Truckee, where he made and sold sourdough bread out of the Truckee bakery Sierra Bakehouse, owned by his then-girlfriend. When they broke up, Giet stayed in town but shifted his focus to pizza. That’s when he began to focus on catering gigs, pop-ups, and farmers’ markets, while still teaching at ABC a few times each month.

“I can make pizza anywhere under any conditions — on the boat in the middle of Lake Tahoe, up in the Sierra somewhere on [Highway] 395, on a snow peak,” Giet says. “[I make] pizza because I’m a dough whisperer and understand dough, fermentation, and how to make products easy, digestible, and tasty.”

His choice to create the perfect pizza also is a nod to his favorite cuisine, Italian, having grown up near Italy.

“Only two hours by car to get there,” he says.

To taste Giet’s food, visit one of the local farmers’ markets he frequents. Or hire Von Pablo to cater your next event.

For details, visit Vonpablo.com.