Stop(s) #4: Kansas City and Dubuque
posted by Palermos Blogger : Wednesday, June 24, 2009 @ 9:45 AM







Event #4: Red, White & Boom

Kansas City, MO

June 17th-21st

Miles From Home: 575

Wednesday, June 17th marked the day we (Kevin, Jake, and Nate) left for Kansas City. Cd's, iPods, and caffeine in many forms are proving to be essential. Song of the moment: Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer". Finally a road trip during the day, which was quite welcomed. We arrived after a long 9 hour drive.

When we left Milwaukee, the weather was 60 degrees and raining. For our Thursday radio remote - it was quite the opposite. Despite the sweltering temperature of 95 degrees (seriously) people loved our pies. So much that while we were there - 10 cases of Palermo's pizza were sold. 4 cases were sampled on Thursday afternoon. Some credit also has to be given to KCMO's morning dj Dick Wilson, Lindsey Montgomery, and Keith. Keith suggested we go to Jack Stack's BBQ for dinner. Sorry McKennas of Omaha - you've been dethroned. We stuffed ourselves silly. Hands down the best bbq we've ever had. We also had a great time at Kansas City's trendy Power & Light district downtown after the meal. Thanks for the pointers Keith!

Friday temperatures were much more bearable, but the wind was the main factor. 105.1 Jack FM joined us at the Price Chopper in Liberty, MO. Kevin talked on the radio for the first time and shared a few laughs with the dj's. 4 cases were sampled at this location, which totaled over 500 slices given to the people. After the event concluded, we headed across the state line into Kansas to gear up for Saturday's big event.

93.3's Red, White & Boom festival began around 2 in the afternoon on Saturday the 20th. On again / off again rain didn’t stop the droves of teenagers from coming to Capital Federal Park @ Sandstone Amphitheater. We went through 12 cases in 6 hours! Kids devoured slices while we educated as many principal household shoppers as we could. Our trailer was in a great spot - stage right, to be exact. A necessary thank-you to Ted Ivey for helping us with everything at the event. Listening to Kevin Rudolf, Safety Suit, and Matt Nathanson live on stage really gave us the drive to churn out more pizza. Due to the large volume of attendees (around ten thousand) we cut our pizza's in 16th slices. For a total of 2,304 slices given away, for free, over the day! You read correctly. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the headliner David Cook, as we had another remote sampling in Dubuque, IA the next day. After we ran out of product, we immediately departed. The kids were sad to see us leave, as tears ran down their faces. Although that could have been the rain. Either way, thanks for everything KC! We can't wait to come back in the future.

The Dubuque sampling day was an astounding success. Jason the manager was very helpful in getting our rig in a very tight spot near the entrance. Their floral department even gave us some rockin' pizza balloons. After an hour of sampling, we could see why we were so popular. People were buying Palermo's left & right, as they were already familiar with the brand. It was an extremely busy Sunday, and we sampled 5 cases worth of pizza. One lady even bought 10 classic varieties! 960 slices were handed out to grateful Iowans.

All in all, our trip to Kansas City was a major success. We received some great compliments about our great tasting pizza. Some didn't even believe that it was frozen. Total slices count for the 4-day tour of the heart of America - 4,224! We're back in Minneapolis next weekend, so make sure to look for us!



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Stop(s) #3 - Mini Wisconsin Road Trip!

Mini Wisconsin Road Trip - Milwaukee, Appleton, and Madison!

Total Miles Traveled: 324

June 12th - 15th

The third weekend of the Palermo's Summer Tour consisted of 4 events throughout Wisconsin. On Friday, June 12th the pizza trailer traveled to a local Sentry grocery store to give away a generous amount of pies. Humans and birds alike seemed to enjoy the Primo Thin Special Edition Pepperoni (our most popular variety on the tour thus far). 96.5 WKLH provided some classic rock tunes and helped us spread the word about us as we churned out the pizza. Thanks guys!






Immediately after the event concluded, the crew (Kevin, Jake, and Nate) hit the road to Appleton. Saturdays agenda called for a few rounds of disc golf in the afternoon, followed by a 6:35pm Timber Rattlers baseball game. Tailgaters enjoyed a few slices before heading into the game around sundown. If you have time - check out the signed A-Rod & David Ortiz jerseys in the main office.



After the Appleton event, we packed up & headed to Madison. Set-up time was at 6:30am Sunday morning for the Capitol View Triathlon at Governor Nelson State Park. Our location was perfect - triathletes couldn't avoid us, as we were facing the finish line. Our giant Palermo's logo beckoned them to come try a slice. By the way - triathletes are crazy. After finishing a 1500 meter swim, 24.85 mile bike ride, and 6.2 mile run (Olympic division), we were shocked to see so many of them a) still functioning, and b) willing and able to grab some free pizza and beer (from the beer tent next to us). In true Madison fashion, the winners of each age group received


beer steins or pitchers, as well as a medal. The event was a huge success, as we had lines of people for the majority of the event. We also found time to do some necessary name-changing of the Primo Thin pizza lineup. Effective immediately, Special Edition Pepperoni will be known as 'Chester Pepperonious III', Grilled Chicken Caesar as 'The Brutus', and the vegetarian-friendly Margherita as 'Large Marge'. Feel free to use those. Our accomodations at the Marriot in Middleton were stellar for our stay in the state capital. A necessary thank-you to the staff of the Great Dane Pub downtown for giving us nutricious, delicious grub in a timely manner.



Our whirlwind of a weekend concluded on Monday, June 15th at the Copps grocery store on University Ave. in Madison. At 3pm, samples were served & promptly devoured. Kevin, Palermo's resident grillmaster, successfully grilled a dozen pizzas. It was highly recommended by the crew, as it tastes amazing. Z104 was there to lend us a hand as well. Our radio station keychain collection is steadily growing.

All in all, we traveled 324 miles over the long weekend. 24 cases were sampled, which means that (approximately, as we cut some pizzas in eighths, tenths, etc...) 2,800+ slices were consumed. Over 2,000 happy, smiling people in one weekend?! I believe our job is done for the summer...

...Right? We haven't even scratched the surface, people! Tomorrow we leave for Kansas City for a few radio remotes and the Red, White, and Boom festival. David Cook, Blue October, and Safety Suit will be there on Saturday the 20th! More importantly, we'll be there too. Should be awesome!

Till then...WI ROUTE IMAGE(A: Palermos HQ, B: Sentry in Franklin, C: Timber Rattlers in Appleton, D: Capitol View Triathlon in Madison, E: Copps in Madison)









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Thank You Notes from Taste of Omaha
posted by Palermos Blogger : Friday, June 12, 2009 @ 8:52 AM

A Palermo's Pizza Family THANK YOU to:
Howard, Rich and the rest of the guys at McMullen Ford in Council Bluffs, IA. They were incredible. Mike at Taste of Omaha - the man behind the scenes.
Eric the Palermos route driver for letting us borrow his truck for the weekend. Glo at 104.5 and ‘Big Party’ at 94.1. And finally, to everyone at the McKennas bbq stand, for giving us a taste of the best bbq pork & bbq chicken in the country. We’ve been craving it ever since we left Omaha.



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Stop #2: Omaha, NE

Miles From Home: 507

June 5th - 7th, Taste of Omaha

After an 8 hour drive, the crew (consisting of Kevin, Jake, Nate, Dana, and Zach) was ready to tackle Cornhusker Nation. The second stop for the summer pizza tour: Omaha, Nebraska's "Taste of Omaha". The weekend fest highlighted the areas best food and entertainment offerings.

Simply put: Palermo's rocked it.

Our riverfront location, situated next to the main music stage and beer tent, was a prime location for pizza perfection. In fact, over 2,800 slices were sold over the 3 day event. Palermo's presence then hit the airwaves.

On Monday, June 8th the team had their first radio remotes. 94.1 WQCH and 104.5 KSRZ brought their finest to hype us up at 2 local Hy-Vee grocery stores. Our primo thin samples were quite a hit with everyone who was lucky enough to stop by!

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Stop #1: Minneapolis, MN And they're off...Palermo's Pizza Summer Tour 2009










Memorial Day weekend marked the kickoff of the Palermo's 2009 Summer Tour. Kevin, Jake and Nate traveled into Downtown Minneapolis to deliver Palermo's perfection to hungry Twins and Brewers fans alike. Over 1,700 total slices were devoured before the games on Saturday and Sunday. The metrodome plaza was a gorgeous setting for the first event of the summer. See you again in June, Twin Cities!

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