Everyone’s Pizza - April 24, 2021
My friend Kat and I ate at Everyone’s Pizza in JC Saturday night. She was visiting from Nashville, TN and I always like to go try new local places when she visits like we used to when she lived locally in Johnson City.
Everyone’s Pizza opened in an enigmatic restaurant storefront that first appeared overnight 6 or 7 years ago proclaiming itself “Tommy’s Steakhouse.” For years it was empty, then, over the course of a year, the entire interior was remodeled and at one time, I even saw what looked like a preview opening, but Tommy’s Steakhouse never opened to the public. It became an enigma. I would walk my dog by and take photos of the progress, or of the lack of progress for years and my friends and I would speculate about why it hadn’t opened. Some friends thought it was a case of inspections causing delays and expensive repairs that the owners couldn’t afford to it was a tax shelter for a rich gangster that just needed it open one day to write it off their taxes. Regardless, at the beginning of 2021 I was shocked to notice that the still like-new Tommy’s Steakhouse sign had been taken down! Before long a new sign had replaced it!
The interior of Everyone’s Pizza is nice (and I had to laugh at all the unused “Tommy’s Steakhouse” decorations that are still up.)
Our server poured his first beer ever for us and seemed concerned that we might want a second one if we had to drive home, but he was really lovely and before long our pizzas arrived.
Kat ordered “The Classic” an herbs, cheese, onion, and spanish white anchovy pizza. Anchovies are not my favorite, but I’ve learned to like them, so I tried it after trying my own order.
I ordered the “Chicken Hot Pie” with pickle brined chicken, chili spice, white onion, garlic dill pickles, and a white sauce. This pie is magic. The chicken was not breaded and genuinely spicy! The sweet onion balanced out the heat and the briny pickle to make a really excellent topping combination with their white sauce.
The Classic with the spanish white anchovies was delicious, too! These were not the canned little black anchovy strips I was used to! These were full little fish (cleaned with no head or tails,) and they were fresh tasting and flavorful! I LOVED IT!
However, the real star here (as it should be) is the pizza crust! Both pizzas had a golden crisp-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside crust that was magic to eat. Unlike some other local pizzas, the crust never set up and became hard or crisp like a cracker! It was wonderful in texture as well as flavor, and this won me over!
Local pizza is not a competition, but several opportunities to explore all the best facets of what makes pizza one of America’s favorite foods! Each one brings something special, and Everyone’s has carved out a niche for itself with sophisticated pizza designs featuring interesting blends of toppings to make flavors that are complex and delicious.
I highly recommend this hidden JC gem, but don’t make it too busy, it’s in my neighborhood and I don’t want long lines to get between me and my pie.
I would have included a menu, but the only one I could find at their web page was not downloadable on a desktop, but you can probably take a screen shot on your phone.
Check it out!