Joe’s Pizza

My girlfriend turned me on this hidden gem this year. Fantastic pizza.

In the land of Monical’s St. Louis-​style pizza, Joe’s Pizza is churning out some pretty good pizza of its own. What they lack in cracker-​crisp crust, is made up in the freshness of the dough.
We ordered Bosco sticks, which I sort of hoped were made in-​house, but are actually shipped in from Bosco’s PIzza in Warren, Michigan. (Making this trip officially a regional affair.) That’s fine; they were okay but clearly started today frozen, and it ends up being a missed opportunity to enjoy more of the fresh crust here. I think the side of tomato sauce accompanies the Bosco sticks; no complaints about that here.
So let’s get to the crust. We ordered a Silcilian Pizza, which is mozzarella, Parmesan, dried oregano and garlic on top of a thin crust. What I didn’t realize was that the pizza didn’t come with tomato sauce on it. Even in Naples the pizza came with a basic (and awesome) tomato sauce. :-p
But anyway. The mozzarella cheese was pretty good, the Parmesan was okay, and everything else rounded off the flavors nicely. The crust here is very good; fresh and seasoned. Not too yeasty. If left to rise, I think it would make a good foccacia.
Joe’s isn’t a bad option for pizza out here in the middle of nowhere. Our next order will probably be something closer to the everyday American palate, though.

Very friendly. Small local business. Food is good. I highly recommend the thick crust. Appears to be hand tossed. Everything tasted fresh. It is very hard to find good pizza in the Midwest. This is one place you should try.

Great pizza. I agree with everything in Henry’s review. The crust is the best! The Italian family running the place are very friendly and take good care of you. There is a dining room for dining in, but a large part of their business is carry out. The place is not fancy, and the menu consists just of pizza and bosco sticks but if its pizza you are looking for you won’t be sorry here. Just stick with the basics for toppings, that is what they do best

In a small town of just over 2000 people in the middle of rural Illinois, there’s a Sicilian family making pizzas.
I shit you not.
Consider also that this is not your run-​of-​the-​mill pizza. Almost every component in their recipe has been fine-​tuned by this small family. The sauce is full of taste, with a slight tang, enough that the pizza does not need to be inundated with it to show you what’s going on.
The dough is also something to be mentioned. Whether you order the thin or thick crust, the dough has a very solid, cake-​like consistency that you can’t find in a normal pizzeria. After you eat this pizza, and then compare it to other places, it feels like other places make their dough very fluffy and airy, full of bubbles and pockets so that the bread doesn’t bake consistently throughout.
My personal favorite is the thick crust, only because I can’t get enough of that dough. On top of that, this pizza really fills you up. Two thick crust slices and you are good. Which means that between 4 friends, splitting a single large pizza is a good bet. You’ll feel like you’re getting cheated when you eat Papa Johns or Pizza Hut on your next trip out.
I must say that while you’re not going to make it out of your way from the city to get to Joe’s pizza, if you just so happen to be passing by Minonk, on the 51 freeway near Peoria, it is definitely worth a stop by.