Joanie’s Pizzeria

Pizza is one of my major food groups. St. Louis style is probably my fave. Paper thin? In squares? I’m there. Joanie’s does it right! It took a while, but we were warned about the wait and perfection takes time. The local beer selection and good company more than made up for it. I believe they have a space for functions upstairs. I’ll have to keep them in mind!

Reliable, friendly service. Well-​rounded menu (lunch specials allow combining pizza + salad pretty affordable, dinner menu has sandwiches, calzones, pasta, pizza – of course – , and salads).
As others have point out, the location cannot be beat. The patio is nice for people-​watching in the summer, but it’s also private enough that you don’t feel on display along Russell. There are a few tables right along Russell that I think are for those who want to smoke.
In the winter, or when the patio’s not open, I enjoy sitting upstairs. There is a splendid view of Soulard from here, and the tempo is just right for me. Waiters check in on you, but you almost feel like you have the place to yourself and you’re just hanging out in the upstairs of a cool, old house that also happens to have excellent pizza and salad on order.
My only complaints about Joanie’s that prevent it from 5 stars (and, granted, I am splitting hairs here – overall, it is pretty excellent): (1) would be nice to have whole wheat dough as an option, (2) sometimes I find the pizza /​dough a little bland (usually this is the case if I just order my own toppings instead of a special, so it could be due to that).
Bonus points for having diet Dr. Pepper. I don’t usually drink soda, but it’s nice to have this option when I feel like it, and not all restaurants carry diet Dr. Pepper sadly.

A six month later restaurant review!
We went here for the July fabulous feast because it wasn’t too far from my new neighborhood. It’s a large place with downstairs and upstairs seating. Not too crowded when we were there — probably around 6:30. I ordered a cheese pizza. I think the cheese was a provel blend. The crust was thin, but not Imo’s-thin. It was pretty good. My drink, a cosmo if I recall correctly, was nice and strong. Everyone seems to love Joanie’s, so I’d like to go back and update the review to a 5-​star one.

If you are close to Soulard and you don’t eat here, that is your loss! Amazing pizza, cold beer, and fast friendly service!

I’ve been to Joanie’s for various events so this past visit was just for us before a Rams game and we enjoyed every minute of it.
When you first walk in, you’ll see the big bar and a few tables. Don’t fret, there is an entire upstairs seating area that is much more spacious. We headed up there and it was all ours! Our waiter (s) were attentive and took our order right away. We got an order of cheese garlic bread, which comes with marinara dipping sauce; a caesar salad to share and bacon thick crust pizza. Plenty of food that came out in a timely manner and there was nothing left over, it was that good!
Parking is on the street and the place was more filled by the time we left.
Great food and a great feel — you must check it out!

This is a cool little spot. I loved the patio atmosphere. The service was great. I went out of my comfort zone and tried the daily special and it wasn’t bad. I don’t have to try cheeseburger pizza anymore, but it wasn’t bad. I would definitely go back to try something that I normally would eat to give it a fair chance.

Let me start off by saying we are new to St. Louis. This was my first experience with the famous «Provel» cheese. It was amazing. Loved the fact that we could sit outside with our kids. My oldest ordered a cheese pizza and loved it. The little one ordered the spaghetti with a meatball and she declared it to be the best meatball she ever had! Hubby and I split the Bruschetta appetizer, which was awesome. We then had a medium «Doug’s South Side» pizza. We ate all of it, but were stuffed. The pizza was fantastic and I especially enjoyed the Provel. Our waiter was attentive and friendly and let us know that the pizza we ordered was the only one on the menu with the famous St. Louis style cheese. We will be back!

This tiny whole in the wall place in Soulard has awesome pizza. Can’t wait to go back.

Went to Joanies last nite with 15 folks. Service was excellent. Had their house salad with the house dressing (vinegarette) which was delicious. Also had BBQ thin crust pizza. Really tasty. Live entertainment downstairs while we were upstairs. First timer who will definitely go back.

I came out to Joanie’s for the first time after another place I was going to nearby was packed. A buddy and I weren’t in the mood to wait so we thought we head over to Joanie’s and try it out.
We took advantage of the outdoor seating and ordered the «medium/​normal» thick crust bacon and chicken pizza. Joanie’s pizza is phenomenal and super reasonably priced. I understand all the hype now. It’s amazing. The crust is thick, it’s not too cheesy, the sauce is amazing, and the pizzas are loaded with high quality toppings. I’m not sure if they deliver, but I hope they do. I can’t wait to come back here and with a bigger group.
It has a really laid back neighborhood-​bar vibe with a decent beer selection. I recommend checking Joanie’s out if you’re a fan of quality pizza.

My favorite local pizza place here in STL (sorry IMO’s). I always get a house deluxe and sub hamburger for sausage.

Did the $ 7.75 lunch special with salad & toasted raviolis. Toasted raviolis seemed kinda burnt on the end & the vegetarian ones were flavorless — could have used more spinach & some salt.
There is outside seating, a first level (bar) & a top story. Service was fast.

I haven’t had a chance to eat here yet, but I recently came out for some drinks with friends on a Thursday night. We had a great time! They have a plentiful selection of beer and a great atmosphere — the place is cozy and dimly, yet adequately lit. The bar tenders were welcoming and helpful. I also got to play an open mic here: the host, Wes was very cool and welcoming, and the crowd was receptive. I will definitely come back to play here and/​or swing by for a drink.

Friendly service and great food!
The salads are huge, the half is more than enough for one person. In fact, I split the meatball grinder and the Cesar salad with the hubs. The warm french bread sub roll was toasted to crispy-​chewy perfection. The golf-​ball sized meatballs, 4 to a sammich, were tender and full of seasoning. I think they are a mixture of italian sausage and ground beef. The salad was freshly torn romaine with the classic toppings of croutons and homemade dressing.
Good stuff priced right.

It’s okay. Nothing about the food is exactly authentic or signature. It’s a good location and good prices, but it’s not the place you go if you’re craving great food.

Lunch with a coworker today. He had the pizza burger and I had a 9″ margherita pizza. His pizza burger looked great — a big juicy patty layered with pepperoni and smothered in sauce and cheese. Like a pizza on a burger crust — Yum!
My pizza was so crispy and delicious that I ate the entire thing! I am not a big eater, so the fact that I consumed a 9″ pizza speaks volumes to the quality. The crust was crispy, the sauce tangy, the tomatoes and basil plentiful. Just the right amount of cheese to showcase the toppings.
Service was great and the value was pretty good too. I will be back to try something else.

In college I would live off of pizza for months at a time. I would pay attention to pizza specials as closely as I would drink specials. As a sports fan I have consumed my fair share of pizza as well. I have ate pizza in three different countries and in a multitude of states. What I am getting at, is that I know my pie…
Joanie’s is the real deal. Smothered in toppings, zesty sauce, tangy melty cheese, perfectly balanced doughy/​crispy crust. Of course being that Joanie’s does things
right, they cut the pie into the traditional St. Louis square slice (both thick and thin crust). Onto the toppings! Oh the toppings! There is no holding back on the toppings. As it should be, but it is commonly not, Joanie’s piles them on! So much so, that you have to clean them off the pan with a fork when you are done. My favorite pie is the ‘Grilled Chicken BLT’ (thick) which is just simply perfect, especially after being handsomely precipitated with Parmesan and red pepper.
Joanie’s is a quality pizza place, in epic Soulard. In a market flooded with pizza topping skimpers, cardboard crusts, and just simply generic pies. Joanie’s is a breath of fresh air… Until you eat so much you can’t breathe any longer!

I met some co-​workers here for a business lunch and discovered another great local place as a result!
I opted for the pizza & salad lunch special. I was given the choice between thin and hand-​tossed — being from Chicago I asked which was thicker. Hand tossed it was. Add some crumbled sausage with a beautiful flavor and slivered onions and it made a delicious lunch. The salad with a house Italian was pretty good as well. I spotted a calzone on my way out and will definitely order one of those next time around.
This next comment may cause a riot in the STL pizza-​loving community but I really like provel cheese much better on top of a salad than a pizza. Fortunately, that was what I received.
Great service+competitive prices+good food = I’ll be back…

I have been a big fan of Joanie’s for over 5+ years, the pizza is great and the rest of the menu is just as good. However we all know the reason we come here, its for the pizza. I usually get the double crust pizza, which is a true pizza pie with a great tasting crust cooked on top of the toppings. It does not matter what toppings you get all of them are great, very high quality ingredients are used here. They also have excellent calzones too. One of my favorite pizza places in St.Louis.

A cute little tavern in Soulard. I came here this past weekend with some girls after we attempted McGurks and realized it wasn’t quite our scene. I didn’t try the pizza yet but OMG it smelled amazing. I really want to come back here for pizzaaa. Nom nom nom! We saw the live band, Acoustic Audio, and they were pretty good! Lots of classic rock and some oldies. The best kind of live music… and the drinks were pretty good for the price. I really want to come back for the pizza. The staff here is really nice too and I liked that it wasn’t a freakin’ mobscene. A bit of an older crowd, but again, that’s what I liked about the place. They had an outdoor area too but it was a little too chilly to sit out there…
I will be back!