Year 2 of Hard Knox
Year 2 of Hard Knox Pizza was what past owners, Dean and Jill Bastian, call the “evolution of the menu.”
The original Hard Knox menu consisted of 8 different 12 inch pizzas. As time progressed throughout year 2, Dean and Jill experimented with different ways to best meet the wants of their customers.
During the first year, people would come into Hard Knox and ask for specific things, often times for things such as hamburger on the pizza, a “meatlovers” option, or a Hawaiian pizza. In the beginning they didn’t implement these ideas, as they wanted Hard Knox’s pizzas to be original. But by year 2, Dean would take what people were asking for and then put Hard Knox’s own spin on it.
Dean started saying “well what if we didn’t put hamburger, but we put meatballs? Or what if instead of a ham and pineapple Hawaiian pizza, we did a peach and prosciutto pizza?” Through trial and error, by the end of year 2 the menu had expanded quite a bit. The most well known pie that was created during year 2 is the “Bone Crusher.” The amazing chemistry of flavors was an immediate hit. The “Bone Crusher” is still on the menu and a customer favorite!
The constant theme of that second year was how can we make the best product possible and deliver it to our customers in the best way possible? In addition to expanding the types of pizzas on the menu, year 2 also consisted of adding different foods to the menu. More salads, calzones, meatballs, Roni Rolls and sandwiches were all added to the menu.
Lunch orders were falling even lower in year 2, so Dean and Jill began trying specials to bring in more volume during the lunch hours. They created a salad and pizza combo. And they went from having just the one 12 inch pizza size to having both a 12 inch and an 8 inch option.
Year 2 was also filled will the ideas and options of how Hard Knox could best grow the business. They started looking into the option of having a second location, as well as hooking up with a franchising company. Almost all of year 2 this was a topic of conversation, but nothing ever was the perfect fit for the vision of Hard Knox.
The menu and ideas behind Hard Knox kept growing throughout year 2, but the physical space didn’t have much change. The only notable thing that was that patio furniture was added outside for more seating.
Year 2 of Hard Knox flew by. It was a year of growth and improvement. The Hard Knox team was ready for more!