Joanie's Pizzeria Coming to South County

­A small banner that hangs over the Louie's Pizza Co. sign has Oakville residents excited. Joanie’s Pizzeria, the celebrated pizza spot in Soulard, is coming to Telegraph Road.

Due to open before the end of October, Joanie’s will be located at 5441 Telegraph Road. The new location will feature classic pizza and salads, a few pastas, sandwiches and appetizers for delivery and carryout meals.

“We wanted to bring a little bit of historic Soulard to Oakville,” said owner Joanie Thomas. “I was ready to expand and knew I wanted to go into the county. It felt like a perfect fit.”

Thomas said she considered West County before deciding on Oakville. A large number of Oakville residents are on the restaurant’s mailing list.

“We knew we could share our pizza with Oakville and some people can’t get down to Soulard,” said John Roman, who will be managing the new location. 

While the delivery and carryout portion is opening soon, Thomas has a bigger plan for the spring. She said she wants to knock out a wall and build a 30-35 person seating area for fast casual dining.

Customers would be able to order at the counter, but eat indoors.

“I think that in the future, it’ll make it really family-friendly,” she said.

Thomas is no stranger to opening a new restaurant. The Soulard native has been in the business since high school and worked as a manager in several restaurants. In 1995, she started Joanie’s because she said there was nowhere to get a slice of pizza in the area.

Joanie’s Pizzeria has been voted the Best Pizza in St. Louis by Alive Magazine and rated in the top 10 by the Riverfront Times.

Thomas said the key to Joanie’s success was fresh ingredients and a homemade touch.

“We like to think we’re pizza with personality,” she said. “Everything is fresh and homemade right in the store.”

The new location is keeping some of Louie’s staff, but is also hiring new employees. In the future, Thomas plans to add online ordering as well as a rewards program for her customers.