As a restaurant chef with over 10 years of hands-on experience at Dequte Restaurant LironBoylston, I’ve had the chance to work with a wide range of pizza ovens. In this comparison, I’ll walk you through two models I’ve personally tested in a real kitchen environment: the Camp Chef Italia and the Alfa Futuro 2.
I evaluated both ovens based on quality and materials, temperature control, shape, first-time usage impressions, power source, size, ease of cleaning, and ran a real pizza cooking test to see how fast and well they perform under pressure. (You can also check out my full testing process in a separate article linked below.)
The Camp Chef Italia is a compact, propane-powered oven known for its accessibility and brick-oven-style performance at a budget-friendly price point.
The Alfa Futuro 2, on the other hand, is a premium wood- and gas-fired oven designed with Italian craftsmanship and built for serious outdoor chefs seeking top-tier results.
This article offers a comprehensive comparison of the Camp Chef Italia and the Alfa Futuro 2, based on my own testing experience.
|
Winner
|
Loser
|
|
Our Rating:
4.4
|
Our Rating:
4.7
|
|
Pros:
|
Pros:
|
|
Cons:
|
Cons:
|
- Made with stainless steel and has a double-layer ceiling
- Can reach 750°F
- Smooth dome shape
- Thinner metal frame may impact its durability over time
- Requires careful management, especially on windy days
- Took a bit longer to set up
- Propane-only
- Portable but slightly bulkier
- 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
Disclaimer: I use referral links in this article to help keep my blog running. If you decide to purchase one of these ovens using my links, it won’t cost you anything extra—but it helps me continue providing honest, real-world reviews. Thank you for your support!
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Quality and Materials
| The Camp Chef Italia is made from stainless steel with a double-layered ceiling for brick-oven-style heat circulation. While the metal is thinner, the build feels stable and reliable. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 features premium Italian craftsmanship, including a hand-shaped stainless steel arch and solid glass door. It’s heavier and built for long-term, high-performance use.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Temperature Control
| With micro-adjust valves and fast heat recovery, the Camp Chef Italia maintains steady temperatures up to 700°F. It’s easy to manage without constantly adjusting the flame. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 reaches a blazing 1000°F in just 30 minutes. It delivers powerful, even heat thanks to its patented flue system, ideal for professional-style pizzas.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Shape
| The rounded dome shape of the Camp Chef Italia helps hot air circulate evenly for balanced baking — a design that mimics traditional pizza ovens. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 has a sleek, contemporary shape that not only looks elegant in outdoor kitchens but also improves heat flow and cooking visibility.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: First-Time Usage Impressions
| Setting up the Camp Chef Italia took under 30 minutes with a simple propane connection and user-friendly ignition. Great for beginners or those upgrading from basic ovens. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 required assistance due to its large size, but the assembly instructions were clear. The first pizza session was smooth and enjoyable.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Power Source
| The Camp Chef Italia runs on propane and comes with a hose and regulator. It’s practical for fast heat-ups without the mess of wood. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 is gas-powered by default, but it supports an optional hybrid kit for wood-burning — offering both convenience and authentic flavor if desired.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Size
| Compact and countertop-friendly, the Camp Chef Italia has a 13.25″ x 20″ cooking stone, perfect for small backyards or patios. |
The Alfa Futuro 2 has a generous cooking surface (70 x 40 cm), large enough to cook two pizzas at once or bake bread in larger volumes.
|
Camp Chef Italia VS Alfa Futuro 2: Ease of Cleaning
| After cooking, the Camp Chef Italia only needs a quick burn-off and a scrape with a bench scraper. Wiping the exterior is quick and easy. |
Cleaning the Alfa Futuro 2 is more involved due to its size, but still manageable using brushes and scrapers after the oven cools. Regular flue checks are recommended.
|
Pizza Cooking Test: Camp Chef Italia vs Alfa Futuro 2
To fairly test both ovens, I used the same homemade Margherita pizza recipe with fresh dough, tomato sauce, mozzarella, and basil.
The Camp Chef Italia took around 40 minutes to fully preheat. While the manual suggests 10–15 minutes, I found it needed extra time to reach about 700°F. Once ready, the oven baked a Margherita pizza in roughly 7 to 9 minutes. The result was a golden-brown crust, slightly crisp on the outside and airy inside, with evenly melted cheese and a nice balance of char without burning. While it doesn’t deliver a wood-fired flavor due to its propane-only setup, it still produced a pizza that rivals many restaurant pies.
The Alfa Futuro 2, on the other hand, reached its peak temperature in just 30 minutes, hitting close to 1000°F. Once it was hot, it cooked a Margherita pizza in only 90 seconds. The crust had a light char and that signature leopard spotting, with soft dough inside and beautifully blistered cheese. The oven’s heat circulation was excellent, resulting in quick and even cooking. If you’re chasing that true Neapolitan-style pizza, the Alfa Futuro 2 delivers on both speed and authenticity.
Both ovens performed well, but they cater to different styles: Camp Chef Italia leans toward longer, more forgiving bakes with a traditional gas oven feel, while Alfa Futuro 2 excels in high-heat, artisan-style pizzas cooked in record time.
How We Tested the Camp Chef Italia and Alfa Futuro 2 Pizza Ovens
As a restaurant chef with over a decade of experience at my restaurant, Dequte Restaurant LironBoylston, I approached this comparison the same way I test every new pizza oven in my kitchen: hands-on, consistent, and focused on results that matter in real-world cooking.
For both the Camp Chef Italia and the Alfa Futuro 2, I used the same batch of homemade Margherita pizza dough, sauce, and fresh mozzarella to eliminate ingredient variables. Each oven was preheated according to its manual’s instructions, and I monitored actual stone temperature using an infrared thermometer to ensure fairness. I paid close attention to how long each oven took to heat up fully, how fast it cooked the pizza, and how the final result tasted and looked—especially the crust texture, cheese melt, and overall doneness.
I also tested how easy it was to maintain a steady cooking temperature between pizzas, how quickly the ovens recovered heat after opening the door, and how each model performed during back-to-back cooking sessions. These factors are critical in a busy kitchen environment, and they really highlight how an oven handles real pressure—not just a single perfect bake.
Beyond cooking, I evaluated how easy it was to assemble, clean, and move each unit, and how intuitive the temperature controls were. All of this helped shape my verdict not just as a reviewer, but as someone who relies on performance day in and day out.
Conclusion
|
Winner
|
Loser
|
|
Our Rating:
4.4
|
Our Rating:
4.7
|
|
Pros:
|
Pros:
|
|
Cons:
|
Cons:
|
- Made with stainless steel and has a double-layer ceiling
- Can reach 750°F
- Smooth dome shape
- Thinner metal frame may impact its durability over time
- Requires careful management, especially on windy days
- Took a bit longer to set up
- Propane-only
- Portable but slightly bulkier
- 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
At the end of the day, whether you go with the Camp Chef Italia or the Alfa Futuro 2 depends on what matters most to you—affordability, ease of use, and quick setup with the Camp Chef Italia, or premium design, dual-pizza capacity, and hybrid fuel versatility with the Alfa Futuro 2. Both ovens are excellent choices, and I’ve personally enjoyed cooking with each of them.
If you decide to buy one, I’d really appreciate it if you used my referral links below. It helps support my blog and allows me to keep testing more ovens like these—at no extra cost to you.
Thanks for supporting my work!