As a restaurant chef with over 10 years of experience at Dequte Restaurant LironBoylston, I’ve had the opportunity to test a wide range of pizza ovens in both professional and home environments. In this comparison, I’ll be evaluating the Blackstone Pizza Oven and the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven, both of which I’ve personally used in my kitchen. I compared these ovens across several key categories: quality and materials, temperature control, shape, first-time usage impressions, power source, size, ease of cleaning, and finally, I conducted a real pizza cooking test to see how long each takes to produce great results. If you’re interested in how I test ovens in more depth, feel free to check out my separate article on the process.
The Blackstone Pizza Oven is a propane-powered oven known for its rotating stone, high heat output, and fast cook times, making it ideal for consistent, restaurant-quality pizzas at home. The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven, on the other hand, is a sleek, wood or gas-fired oven designed in Italy with modern insulation, elegant curves, and serious heat performance tailored for passionate outdoor cooks.
I’ve compared the Blackstone Pizza Oven and the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven in detail in this article, using my own test results.
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Winner
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Loser
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Our Rating:
4.5
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Our Rating:
4.7
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Pros:
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Pros:
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Cons:
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Cons:
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- Durable construction with a stainless-steel cooking chamber and a heavy-Duty cast iron rotating tray
- Capable of reaching 900°F
- Unique design
- Heavier and bulkier
- Took longer to assemble
- Powered by a single, high-pressure propane burner
- Handcrafted Italian design and stainless steel arch
- Heats up to 1000°F but takes closer to 30 minutes
- Sleek and spacious shape
- Runs on gas by default but includes an optional Hybrid Kit for wood-fired cooking
- Its size makes it more suited for permanent outdoor installations than Portability
- Requires more effort to clean
- amazing for restaurant but too much for residential
To keep my blog going, I use referral links throughout this article. If you decide to buy one of these ovens, I’d really appreciate you using the links—it earns me a small commission at no extra cost to you, and helps keep this kind of content coming.
Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Quality and Materials
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven is built with stainless steel, a cast iron rotating tray, and double-wall insulation, offering solid durability and efficient heat retention. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven is handcrafted in Italy with high-end stainless steel, ceramic insulation, and a large glass door, giving it premium build and looks.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Temperature Control
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven reaches 900°F in just 10 minutes using a propane burner, offering fast and reliable heat without constant monitoring. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven heats up to 1000°F in about 30 minutes, providing powerful heat but requiring a longer preheat time and some patience.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Shape
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven features a functional design with a rotating stone and rear-positioned burner, promoting even cooking without needing manual rotation. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven has a sleek, modern dome shape and large glass door that adds aesthetic appeal while still ensuring good heat circulation.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: First-Time Usage Impressions
| Using the Blackstone Pizza Oven for the first time was straightforward. Setup took effort, but operation was intuitive once lit, with great results from the start. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven made a strong first impression with its elegant design and dual-pizza capacity, though it needed more space and time to operate properly.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Power Source
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven runs on propane, delivering 60,000 BTUs and offering easy, adjustable heat with minimal fuel handling. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven runs on gas, but can be converted to wood with an optional kit. It uses a patented flue system to circulate heat efficiently.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Size
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven is large but manageable, especially with its wheeled cart for mobility. It’s ideal for patios or professional kitchens. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven has a large cooking surface (70×40 cm) and fits two pizzas, but it’s heavy and not easily moved without help.
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Blackstone VS Alfa Futuro 2: Ease of Cleaning
| The Blackstone Pizza Oven is easy to clean—the stone is removable, and the interior can be wiped down without much hassle. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven is straightforward to clean but requires more effort due to its size and chimney inspection steps.
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Pizza Cooking Test
To compare real-world performance, I conducted a pizza cooking test using both the Blackstone Pizza Oven and the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven, starting with how quickly each oven could heat up and ending with how the pizza turned out in terms of taste and texture.
The Blackstone Pizza Oven heated up remarkably fast, reaching over 900°F in just 10 minutes. This quick preheat time was a major advantage, especially in a busy kitchen setting. The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven, while also very powerful, took a bit longer—around 30 minutes—to reach its peak temperature of 1000°F. It’s impressive, but you do need more time and patience to get there.
When it came time to bake, the Blackstone Pizza Oven cooked a classic Margherita pizza in just 70 seconds. The propane-powered flame and rotating stone worked together perfectly to create an evenly cooked pizza with a crispy bottom, beautifully blistered crust, and gooey mozzarella. It was fast, efficient, and required no manual turning.
The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven took about 90 seconds to bake two Margherita pizzas at once. The internal heat was well distributed, and the results were excellent: a soft, airy crust with a distinct wood-fired flavor (if you use the hybrid wood kit), and toppings that cooked evenly across both pies. However, because there’s no rotating surface, I had to keep an eye on the pizzas and rotate them by hand to avoid overcooking one side.
In the end, both ovens produced restaurant-quality pizzas, but the Blackstone Pizza Oven edged ahead in speed and ease of use, while the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven offered a more artisanal experience with stunning flavor—especially for those who enjoy a traditional, wood-fired style.
How We Tested
To ensure a fair and accurate comparison between the Blackstone Pizza Oven and the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven, I followed the exact same process for both ovens in a controlled environment. I used identical ingredients for both tests—a freshly prepared Margherita pizza with the same dough, sauce, mozzarella, and fresh basil. The goal was to evaluate how each oven performs under the same conditions when it comes to preheating, baking, and overall pizza quality.
First, I preheated both ovens to their maximum recommended pizza-cooking temperatures. The Blackstone Pizza Oven reached 900°F in just 10 minutes using its high-pressure propane burner. Meanwhile, the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven needed around 30 minutes to climb to its peak of 1000°F, using its gas burner and patented flue system.
Once both ovens were ready, I launched the pizzas one by one. In the Blackstone Pizza Oven, the rotating stone ensured that the Margherita pizza baked evenly in just 70 seconds without requiring any manual intervention. The Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven also performed well, baking two pizzas simultaneously in about 90 seconds, though I did need to rotate them manually to avoid uneven browning on one side.
After baking, I assessed each pizza for crust texture, bottom crispiness, evenness of melt, and overall taste. I also considered the effort it took to manage the oven during cooking—such as rotating the pizza, watching for hot spots, and maintaining a consistent heat.
This hands-on test allowed me to compare not just how the ovens bake pizza, but also how easy and enjoyable they are to use in a real kitchen environment.
Final Thoughts
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Winner
|
Loser
|
|
Our Rating:
4.5
|
Our Rating:
4.7
|
|
Pros:
|
Pros:
|
|
Cons:
|
Cons:
|
- Durable construction with a stainless-steel cooking chamber and a heavy-Duty cast iron rotating tray
- Capable of reaching 900°F
- Unique design
- Heavier and bulkier
- Took longer to assemble
- Powered by a single, high-pressure propane burner
- Handcrafted Italian design and stainless steel arch
- Heats up to 1000°F but takes closer to 30 minutes
- Sleek and spacious shape
- Runs on gas by default but includes an optional Hybrid Kit for wood-fired cooking
- Its size makes it more suited for permanent outdoor installations than Portability
- Requires more effort to clean
- amazing for restaurant but too much for residential
Both the Blackstone Pizza Oven and the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven deliver exceptional results and are capable of crafting restaurant-quality pizzas right in your backyard or patio. The Blackstone Pizza Oven stands out for its speed, simplicity, and rotating stone that makes cooking evenly almost effortless. It’s the ideal choice for those who want a powerful, reliable pizza oven that’s ready to go in minutes.
On the other hand, the Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Oven offers a beautiful design, large capacity, and authentic Italian craftsmanship. It’s perfect for those who love a more hands-on, traditional experience and appreciate the versatility to bake more than just pizza.
Ultimately, it comes down to your personal cooking style and what you value most—efficiency and ease with the Blackstone, or design and artisanal performance with the Alfa Futuro 2.
If you found this comparison helpful and decide to buy one, I’d really appreciate it if you use my referral links. I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, and it helps keep my blog running:
Whichever oven you choose, you’re in for incredible pizza nights ahead!