The tale of the Brown Dog started back in June of 2001 with Pacific Street Pizza on the west end of town. From this location, we developed a reputation for great classic American-style pizza and our signature YX cheesesteak sub—which gets its name from the license plates Colorado once issued to residents of San Miguel county that started with the letters “YX”. Eventually, we outgrew the Pacific Street Pizza location and moved to Colorado Avenue, changing our name to Brown Dog Pizza.
The distinctive name “Brown Dog” comes from the owners, Dan Lynch and Jeffrey “Smoke” Smokevitch, and their chocolate Labrador retrievers, Phlounder and Boone. While Phlounder and Boone are no longer with us, their legacy lives on in the spirit of our pizzeria. Dan originally hails from New England and is a die-hard Boston sports team fan, as evidenced by the sports memorabilia that adorns the Brown Dog’s walls. Smoke comes from Michigan, where he attended the University of Michigan and played football on the 1997 National Championship-winning team. Their successful partnership of more than two decades has resulted in the Brown Dog Pizza you see today.
Smoke attended the former International School of Pizza, founded by legendary Pizzaiolo and Master Instructor Tony Gemignani. Hand-picked by Gemignani, Smoke became a part of the World Pizza Champions, a renowned pizza team with members from all over the world competing in culinary pizza baking and acrobatic pizza competitions. Smoke competed in various competitions domestically and worldwide, including Italy, Paris, and Las Vegas, placing high in many of them and even winning some.
Smoke has been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, where he prepared the Brooklyn Bridge Pizza with Guy Fieri. Additionally, he has been reviewed by Dave Portnoy for his Detroit Style Pizza, scoring a high ranking on the One Bite Pizza app.
Our menu features award-winning Detroit Style Pizza, known for its rectangular crust that has a light, airy texture that’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The pizza sauce is on top, and the cheese around the edges caramelizes for a unique and delicious taste. In Italy, we call it the Frico crust!
We also offer Classic American Pizza available in Traditional Crust or Thin Crust. We have Gluten-Friendly Pizzas available in Detroit Style and Tavern Style, which can be made vegan as well. Our menu includes a variety of appetizers, with chicken wings and garlic cheese bread being particularly popular. We offer fresh salads, subs, wraps, burgers, and delicious desserts. We have local off-season specials because our locals are the backbone of our business. We love our Telluride community and strive to support and serve them.
We have a full bar with draft beers, bottled and canned beers, and a selection of wine and spirits. Brown Dog Pizza is a great place to watch sports, featuring all the sports packages for NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, and soccer games on several TVs throughout the restaurant. Our environment is family and kid-friendly, with a kids menu available.
Come see why Brown Dog Pizza’s Detroit-style pizza is gaining fame and winning fans nationwide.
