BLAIR, NEBRASKA (2025 August 19, Tuesday)
Don Harrold, Writer / Editor
editor@blairtoday.com – Facebook
Two months in, acclaimed pizzeria earns local praise while navigating small-town market
Two months after opening in Blair, Tasty Pizza has earned enthusiastic local support, with customers praising both the quality of the food and the friendly staff, according to manager Nico in an interview Tuesday. The positive reception continues the success story of a pizzeria that has earned recognition as one of the Midwest’s top pizza destinations.
The Blair location represents a significant expansion for owner Mary Joseph, whose pizza restaurant has operated in Omaha since 2012, evolving from the original Tasty Pastry concept. The Blair shop marks the second active location after the original Leavenworth Street shop was lost to fire and operations consolidated to the current 60th Street Omaha location in 2020.
Rocky Start Tests New Location
The Blair opening in June faced immediate operational challenges that tested both staff and customer patience. Nico, who worked at the Omaha location for five years before taking over management in Blair, was visiting family in the Philippines when the restaurant first opened its doors.
“It’s an old building. There’s a lot of it’s a fixer upper,” Nico explained Tuesday. The most significant issue was a malfunctioning walk-in cooler that forced the team to transport dough daily from their Omaha location during the crucial opening weeks.
“We were transporting dough from our Omaha location to here, which was kind of hard at first, because you have to take a lot of boxes, and those first few weeks were really busy,” Nico said. The dough transportation was particularly challenging because of the restaurant’s commitment to quality – Nico describes the dough as “definitely the one thing we want to that we’d like to think separates us from other pizzerias.”
The cooler problems led to significant product losses during the opening period, including having to discard ice cream and produce during power outages. Despite these setbacks, the restaurant has resolved the mechanical issues and established more reliable operations.
Small Town, Different Challenges
Operating in Blair presents distinct challenges compared to Omaha, where Tasty Pizza has built a loyal following and earned recognition including a top ranking among Midwest pizza parlors by Yelp in 2023.
“The foot traffic isn’t always consistent. Compared to Omaha, where you have a ton of other businesses, like hospitals are open 24/7, college businesses, college schools, universities, where there’s like thousands of kids and students,” Nico observed.
Sales patterns in Blair prove notably volatile, with distinct busy and slow periods. The restaurant experiences predictable rushes during certain hours and days, but also sees significant lulls – like the typical 2-4 PM period when Tuesday’s interview took place.
“It’s very volatile. So it’s never like super consistent, especially with how small Blair is,” Nico said, noting that this was expected given the market size difference.
Positive Customer Response Despite Operational Questions
Two months in, customer reception has been overwhelmingly positive. “People here are really nice, very accepting. They and they enjoy the pizza a lot. They have a lot of good comments,” Nico said.
Based on customer feedback, two elements stand out as local favorites: the crust and the friendly, available staff. Popular pizza varieties have varied week to week, including the Supreme, Hawaiian, Bacon Gouda, Margherita, pesto, and Mediterranean spinach feta options.
Beyond pizza, the cheesy garlic bread has become a standout menu item, along with the restaurant’s four varieties of stromboli, fresh side salads, and frozen take-home pizzas that “sell really well” and require frequent restocking.
However, three operational aspects have generated the most customer questions:
Three Key Customer Concerns
No Delivery Service
Unlike many modern pizzerias, Tasty Pizza doesn’t offer delivery service. This decision reflects owner Mary Joseph’s preference for keeping operations straightforward. “She’s always done business in a very simple way. And I think this is part of it. She doesn’t want to over complicate it,” Nico explained.
Limited Pizza Customization
Perhaps the most frequent customer inquiry involves pizza customization. Tasty Pizza operates with a “menu as it is” approach – customers can remove ingredients from existing pizzas, but cannot add extra toppings or make substitutions.
“You can take ingredients off pizzas, but you can’t, like we don’t do extra toppings or substitutions,” Nico clarified. For example, customers wanting only pepperoni and mushrooms could order a pizza that includes those ingredients and request all other toppings be removed, but cannot create a custom combination from scratch.
This represents a change from earlier operations – a 2017 article noted that patrons enjoyed “the ability to customize their toppings,” suggesting the policy shifted as the business focused on operational efficiency.
Tuesday-Saturday Schedule
The restaurant operates Tuesday through Saturday, closing on Sundays and Mondays. This schedule has generated questions, particularly given that Sundays are typically busy pizza days, especially during football season.
The closed days reflect Joseph’s commitment to ensuring employees get adequate time off. “She’s also very, very set on making sure that her employees get those two days off,” Nico said, noting that staff typically work 10-11 hour days over five days.
However, Nico acknowledges the business potential of Sunday operations, particularly during Nebraska football season. “I actually do plan on talking to Mary about that at some point,” he said, recognizing that Sunday and Monday closures might mean missing peak demand periods, especially given Blair’s strong sports culture.
Looking Toward Football Season
As Tasty Pizza approaches its third month in Blair, the focus is on building consistency and capitalizing on seasonal opportunities. Football season represents particular potential, with Nico noting the opportunity for Friday night business after high school games.
“I think being available for people during those hours and doing really, a really good job during those times and those days of the weeks where we know it’s gonna get really busy, is crucial to make up for those slow days,” he said.
The restaurant has found success beyond pizza with competitive pricing on beverages and convenience items – $1 soft drinks, 50-cent water bottles, and $2.15 two-liters that draw customers who “will come in here just to buy drinks.”
Despite the challenges of operating in a smaller market with volatile sales patterns, Nico remains committed to the expansion. Having left college where he was studying business management to focus on this opportunity, he said the experience validates his decision.
“I believe in tasty pizza beyond just a salary,” Nico said. “Otherwise, I’d still be in school pursuing a different, different business.”
