Chicago Brick Oven Residential Outdoor Pizza Oven Kit, CBO-500 DIY Kit Review (2026)

Who the CBO-500 kit is for

This kit is aimed at homeowners and builders who want a real masonry style pizza oven as a permanent fixture rather than a portable appliance. The core provides a 27 by 22 inch cooking floor, over 600 square inches, inside a dome built from refractory cement reinforced with stainless steel fibers, designed to be finished with a stand, enclosure and outer material chosen by the builder. It fits anyone comfortable with a real construction project, working with a mason or contractor, or who already has an outdoor kitchen taking shape. Cooks who want to bake pizza the day the box arrives should look at an assembled portable oven instead, since this kit needs a base and curing before its first fire.

Specs and design explained

The CBO-500 kit ships as several refractory components, including a dome weighing about 210 pounds, an arch piece, and a two piece hearth totaling roughly 75 pounds, for a combined kit weight around 450 pounds. Overall assembled dimensions run close to 28.5 inches wide by 29.5 inches deep by 16 inches high for the core itself, before any enclosure is added. The oven is rated to reach up to 1,000F, and the package includes an installation kit along with an infrared thermometer, a pizza peel and a cleaning brush, giving builders the tools needed to finish and start using the oven once construction is complete.

Living with a built in wood fired oven

Getting this oven running is a real project, starting with a masonry or concrete base strong enough to carry several hundred pounds, then setting the dome and hearth pieces, building an enclosure in stucco, stone or brick, and curing the refractory material with a series of small fires before full heat use. Once finished, daily use means building a wood fire inside the dome and managing it much like any masonry oven, with the thick refractory material holding heat well after the fire dies down for later baking or roasting. Because the oven becomes a fixed structure, the build location needs to be decided before construction starts.

Trade-offs against portable ovens

Compared with a portable multi fuel oven like the Ooni Karu 12, the CBO-500 offers a larger cooking floor and the thermal mass of true masonry construction, which holds heat for hours rather than minutes, but it cannot be moved once built and takes a weekend or more of labor before the first pizza. Compared with the larger CBO-750 kit from the same maker, the 500 is the smaller, somewhat more affordable core, suited to a backyard that does not need the bigger oven's extra cooking area or the additional weight and space that comes with it.

Verdict and who should pick something else

With our score of 8.1 out of 10, the CBO-500 is a solid, serious kit for anyone committed to building a permanent wood fired pizza oven into their backyard. It rewards patience and construction skill with an oven that can outlast a portable model by decades. Homeowners who rent, plan to move soon, or simply want pizza without a building project should choose a ready made portable oven instead. For a fixed, high capacity backyard oven built to last, the CBO-500 kit is a strong foundation to build around.

Frequently asked questions