Big Johnny’s Pizza House

This is a hard one. I don’t think there’s another pizza joint in the whole city which varies in quality as much as Big Johnny’s.
Let’s start with the store. It’s disgusting. Everything from the drooping awning to the rickety thrift store furniture to the 20 year old condiments is covered in grease. The counter is greasy, the window is greasy, and most of all, the staff is greasy. If this were a cartoon, the staff would be depicted as cockroaches with cigarettes. The health inspectors are kept busy by this place. And the walls are covered with inkjet printed photos of celebrities who you know have never set foot in this dump.
But more important is the pizza. And that’s where the surprise comes in. Because some days you’ll be given a piece of burnt, carbon-​covered pizza that has sat around since the day before. But other days, you’ll arrive just in time to get a slice fresh out of the oven. And if you are lucky enough to get one of these golden tickets, then you are in for something special. I have had some of the best slices of pizza in my life come out of that crusty old pizza oven. I don’t know how it’s possible, but when everything comes together, the results are magical.
So do I recommend it? Well… not really. There’s too much chance you’ll get a cold slice with rotten pepperoni and bits of bugs in it. But if you dare spin this wheel, some times you’ll walk out a winner.

Read your reviews and tried it out. Was I ever disappointed. No Johnny, just a small mid-​east lady. Guessing the business was sold. And the price for 2 medium pizzas is not $ 25 as advertised, increased to $ 29. Never again.

Open late, owned and run by big Johnny who is the man! Great pizza! Close to all the fun stuff to do in kitsilano and always reliable for a late night delicious slice of pizza.
I had the Hawaiian tonight and my friends had the cheese and pesto and everyone went home very happy.
We called at 1am Sunday night when he was supposed to be closed and he stayed open so we could come get a few slices.

Had the baked pasta with meat sauce. A tad bland, tastes like a «meat sauce» as opposed to tomato spaghetti sauce but the cheesy top does it some good. Comes with a hefty chunk of garlic bread. For 11 o’clock at night I can’t complain. But for $ 12 (includes tax) I might’ve gotten something tastier at The Naam. Asked the fellow who owns the place if he gets good business and he said it’s mostly loyal locales since he’s been there for 30 years. That’s gotta be the only way he can keep the place open in my opinion.

Came here because I needed food badly. Literally the worst pizza I’ve ever bought. Cold. Stale. Expensive for crap.

My next go to place for quick, good quality pizza – also by the slice.
Tried their Hawaiian slice, nice crust & ample sweet big chunk pineapples, & his tomato sauce also different and good.
Just surprised at lack of reviews, just a few stores down from the busy Darby’s Pub.

a good place to grab a slice.
A bit more $$ than the other by-​the-​slice joints, but worth it for me

Thanks to the reviews I read of this place I skipped the individual slices and went straight for whole pies. The 2-​for-​1 pricing works out to roughly what Panago would charge. Quality is about the same, maybe a tad tastier. And the people working there are happy to accommodate any minor tweaks you want to make (e.g. I was able to tweak a sausage and mushroom to a sausage and pepperoni, no questions asked).

Thier invidivual slices are just «meh» but there whole pies are quite good. So I’ll just focus on the pies to go.
They are good quality and there are tons of veggie options to choose from.
The pies always arrive fresh and delicious and they are open really late, so you can crave pizza even way into the wee hours.
Like I said before their individual slices they sell in their oddly decorated pizza shop are really hit or miss. They do have free rance and hot sauce to drown it (if you prefer) but if you don’t eat meat, the option is usually cheese, and it’s not always the freshest.
All in all though, if you live in Kits (they deliver to Kits and Kerrisdale) and you want a fresh hot pie, Big Johnny’s will do you right.

Alright, I’ll admit that the 3 star rating might seem a little high for this place. But its just always been there for me through thick and thin. The surly staff always greets you with a «Hey Big Johnny’s, what d’you want?» that suits the slightly shabby décor. But there’s just something about their pizza that keep me coming back.
In the by the slice department their $ 2.25 or so slice is a bit steep and the choices are only and always pepperoni, pepperoni mushroom, ham & pineapple and veggie. However, the slices are huge and the sauce is packed with flavor. Sadly, ranch dip is extra, but Parmesan cheese and dried chilies are free. Perhaps Big Johnny’s biggest advantage for their slices is that they are open until 2−3am most nights (closed Monday) and are the only thing in Kits that provides quick eats for the late night crowd.
Where Big Johnny’s really shines is in their full made to order pizzas. They are always 2 for 1 but what that really means is that the price of one equates roughly to the price of two (eg: about $ 23 for two big medium pizzas). But their menu is fairly extensive and the pizza’s themselves are delicious when made to order. I would suggest the chicken pesto, they don’t skimp on either chicken or pesto and they create the perfect balance with the marinara and the dough. They also have some good veggie options and a build your own pizza option.
At Big Johnny’s you don’t come for the atmosphere, you get your delicious pizza and head on out. A nice dose of down and out in the often overly bubbly and trendy Kits area.

I wandered in here because I needed food badly and didn’t want to bother with the Canucks induced crowd at my usual pub. In retrospect this was a bad idea.
My suspicions were aroused by the state of the furniture and décor. The tables appeared to be covered in a thin but impenetrable grimy residue to which I think the only solution might be sandpaper. The design choices for the walls completely escapes me: both walls are lined with dual rows of portraits of famous actors, some autographed, most not. I could detect no rhyme or reason for this rouges gallery in an otherwise grimy and downtrodden pizza joint.
I ordered a couple of slices, one was pepperoni and mushroom and the other was vegetable. At least that’s what the guy told me. When I got my stale, reheated pizza I discovered that the meaty slice had a mysterious topping that resembled bacon in texture and no detectable mushrooms; the veggie slice had pineapple on it. It may be a common pizza topping, but I don’t care for it at all, and it’s certainly not a vegetable. I was also vaguely concerned about the yellow tinge to the cheese on the mystery meat slice. I certainly expect more for $ 2.50 a slice.
Avoid at all costs.