Pizza Madness — The Salt Lake Tribune’s bracket-style tournament where readers voted for the best pizza spot in Utah — has ended, and a winner has been chosen.

After six rounds of voting, that winner is Pizza Nono, at 925 E. Harvey Milk Blvd., in Salt Lake City’s 9th and 9th neighborhood.

“Let’s go!” a Pizza Nono employee yelled when he heard the news that the pizzeria had won.

“We’re very excited,” said Pizza Nono owner and founder Will McMaster. “... Any notoriety from you guys is really great.”

Pizza Nono beat The Pie in the championship round of Pizza Madness, earning bragging rights and 76% of the 250 total votes, against 24% for The Pie.

In all, Salt Lake Tribune readers cast more than 1,000 votes in Pizza Madness, starting with play-in rounds and progressing through a round of 32, the Sweet 16, the Elite 8, the Final 4 and the championship.

McMaster said they secured the votes Pizza Nono needed to win by calling upon the pizzeria’s many dedicated employees, friends and customers to cast their ballots in support, as well as posting about the tournament on social media.

“Everyone was really excited about the whole thing,” McMaster said.

McMaster, a Salt Lake City native, was inspired to open Pizza Nono in 2017 after living in New York City for about eight years and developing a passion for pizza.

When he moved back to Utah, he felt like a wood-fired pizza place that used organic flour and high-quality ingredients was something Salt Lake City — and specifically the 9th and 9th neighborhood — needed at the time, he said.

McMaster imagined Pizza Nono (“nono” is Italian for “ninth”) to be a “local community pizza joint” that was casual enough where “people could just come in and get a pizza, be able to get a glass of wine or a beer, and be able to sit on the patio and just see neighbors,” he said.

He classifies Pizza Nono’s pizza as “neo-Neapolitan,” a mash-up between New York-style pizza and classic Neapolitan.

Neapolitan pizza is traditionally wood-fired and baked quickly in a hot oven, giving it a lightly charred crust and a doughy middle. Pizza Nono’s pizza — which starts with dough that’s fermented for about 36 hours — is baked in a hybrid oven that runs on wood and natural gas, and has a chewy, crispy crust.

McMaster said using gas lets them control the heat better than wood alone, and the use of wood still gives the pizza that little bit of smokiness. On smoggy days in Salt Lake City, Pizza Nono just uses gas instead of adding more smoke to the air, he said.

Once the pizza comes out of the oven, Pizza Nono’s employees add organic tomato sauce and toppings like fresh mozzarella, olive oil, caramelized onions, salami, mushrooms, pepperoni and more.

“Just using good, simple ingredients is always my view, not trying to chef it up too much,” McMaster said.

Pizza Nono is probably most well-known for the Beehive pizza, he said. That pizza is topped with red sauce, fresh mozzarella, Calabrese salami, pickled jalapenos, organic honey and Grana Padano cheese.

However, McMaster said their most popular pizza is probably the tried-and-true margherita, with red sauce, fresh mozzarella, basil, Grana and extra-virgin olive oil.

Recently, Pizza Nono expanded into the space next door, adding more seating. McMaster said he also plans to add a bar to that area, giving people the option to peruse beer on draft and a wider variety of wines to go with their pizza.

For someone who hasn’t yet been to Pizza Nono, McMaster said people can expect “a friendly neighborhood spot that you can get good pizza, sit out on the patio, [and receive] good service in just a great area of Salt Lake.”