Everybody’s Pizza to close after 41 years in Emory Village
For generations of Emory University students, faculty and staff, Everybody’s Pizza has been that restaurant. The campus restaurant. Lots of food for a decent price, cheap drinks for those who can show the right I.D. and the kinds of oddball dishes that people cramming for finals learn to crave — such as Thai chicken pizza salad.
But just as the number of food offerings in Emory Village are on the upswing with the recent additions of Chipotle Mexican Grill and Zoës Kitchen, Everybody’s has decided to call it quits. The last day will be March 19. Owner Andy Kurlansky sent this press release:
After 41 great years in Emory Village, we are retiring from the restaurant business.
We are proud to have served some 3 million pizzas to multiple generations of Atlantans since 1971.
Here’s to all who had their first dates at Everybody’s, met their spouse at Everybody’s, or celebrated other of life’s joyous events with us.
Thanks to all in Atlanta who have been loyal fans of our pizza, and who have been guests in our “home.”
But most of all, we thank all of the wonderful folks who have worked with us throughout these 41 years,
for they have been the true heart and soul of the place.
Without their dedication and love, none of it could have happened.
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© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
126 comments Add your comment
Good Riddance
March 7th, 2013
4:01 pm
Some of the most god awful pizza I’ve ever had. Won’t be missed.
Dean Wormer
March 7th, 2013
4:08 pm
I heard they reported sales based on everyone who looked at the menu, not just the people who actually ate there.
resident
March 7th, 2013
4:38 pm
Maybe another coffee place can move in– since we have 5 right there! or maybe a noodle place– since we have 2. I look forward to welcoming something better like a french bistro or a marketfresh. Please NO MORE sandwich places– we have enough!
remmie
March 7th, 2013
4:40 pm
I grew up eating here and my parents had their first date here. This is a place where tones of memories very dear to me took place. For all the people who feel like it is their duty to say rude things about a restaurant that has been a land mark for so long and has been so wonderful for so many people through the years, why don’t you try spending your time putting more positive messages out in the world instead of being rude.
Julia
March 7th, 2013
4:47 pm
Chipotle’s is upscale? who knew!! *snark*
Brent Tozzer
March 7th, 2013
5:32 pm
I have always loved and appreciated Everybody’s pizzas. Can’t imagine what will take its place, except some franchise. This is a loss.
question for davy
March 7th, 2013
5:38 pm
davy @ 1:32 pm said … People with mortgages and families. Hope you’re happy with yourself.
————————————————–
Wait staff and kitchen / cooks should not have mortgages? A little dramatic?
Marcia
March 7th, 2013
6:21 pm
I AGREE WITH ANOTHER COMMENT THAT ASKED WHY DIDN’T THE OWNERS JUST SELL IT TO SOMEONE WHO WOULD AGREE TO KEEP IT THE SAME (AS A CONDITION F SALE)?
chuck
March 7th, 2013
6:31 pm
While the quality of the food in the past years is debatable what isn’t debatable is how whiny Emory students are about what they are “entitled” to. EB’s tried very hard to work with Emory. At their own expense, bought a terminal that would allow them to accept the Emory card. But the thing failed frequently and wasn’t serviced in a timely fashion. It cost EB’s money to even attempt this. And Emory students never tipped and also whined because staff wouldn’t sell alcohol to them (uh – you are underage!). Sorry but EB’s was nicer to Emory than Emory was to EBs by a long short.
Bubba
March 7th, 2013
6:34 pm
LONG LIVE Rocky’s Brick Oven Pizza on Peachtree !
Cyn
March 7th, 2013
6:50 pm
Damn. Will someone PLEASE give us the recipe for the Thai Chicken Pizza Salad????
ardnamor
March 7th, 2013
6:52 pm
Creative destruction. On with the new.
DeDe
March 7th, 2013
7:16 pm
Started going to Everybody’s Pizza in 1973. Great place for a group to go for Pizza and Beer. As our friends were located all over Atlanta, Everybody’s was a great central meeting place. Although none of us went to Emory. Great place to gather after Rugby games at Emory. Haven’t been there in years, but it holds fond memories. Sorry to see it go. To many good places being run out of business or taken over by so-so chains with no atmosphere and boring food.
Lance
March 7th, 2013
8:11 pm
Who cares about the pizza place. They are kicking out the best coffee place in the southeast next door. That is what is actually sad here.
bryantkarnold
March 7th, 2013
8:28 pm
I worked for these folks in the 90’s. They ran a tight ship!!!! As a chef I always utilize my experience there as inspiration.
Times are truely tough people! If this “Mom & Pop” cant make it, then there will be none. I blame the administration and their lack of leadership in protecting small business……..
Valerie
March 7th, 2013
8:50 pm
I am so upset! My husband and I had our first date there back in 1974 and we’ve been going there since then. Having moved out of Atlanta a few years ago, we still make a point of going to Everybody’s when in Atlanta (which is several times a year). I am also saddened by the fact that I won’t be able to go one last time before it closes. I realize people can retire, but it’s hard to imagine that no one would buy this great restaurant and keep it going.
Larry
March 7th, 2013
9:19 pm
sad day for many in the Emory community. not everyone loved it, but I did! It’s had a decent crowd every time I’ve been there in the last year. what’s up with all you downer folks wanting to just insult the place! It was an institution and will be missed by many! The everybody’s special pizza is still one of my faves!
berry steve
March 7th, 2013
9:39 pm
I went for 20 yrs on a semi regular basis. The pizza got very Avg but their prices went up to where you started looking for something better. It was easy to find better and cheaper in the pizza world. At the end, just last mon, I decided that Hungry Howie’s was alot better. Sad but true.
RJ
March 7th, 2013
10:14 pm
Are they closing due to the crushing tax burden and regulations of obamacare?
maury
March 7th, 2013
10:16 pm
just open up a subway or dominos pizza — no big deal
Matt
March 7th, 2013
10:23 pm
I sadly have to agree with the dissenters. It wasn’t *bad* by any stretch, but coming from a 2010 grad who stayed on for grad school, trust me when I say very few Emory students dined there. There are so many other places with MUCH better pizza: Antico, Fellini’s, Ammazza, Mellow Mushroom, Shorty’s, even Fritti.
Shogun
March 7th, 2013
10:41 pm
Have been eating pizza there since 1973. Last Easter when I got out of one of the ICUs at Emory, the first thing I wanted was an Everybody’s pizza. (And no, my ICU admission had nothing to do with their food.) Jagger’s was OK for beer and burgers but Everybody’s was THE pizza place. P. J. Haley’s was good for a pitcher or two too. For those who are glad to see Everybody’s go, I hope they put a McDonlald’s in, that would be about their style.
Rachel
March 7th, 2013
11:01 pm
I loved it there – my husband was an Emory faculty member for years and our family enjoyed many pizzas at Everybody’s. Took my grandson there last Summer and regaled him with stories of our times there. I’ll miss it.
Native Atlantan in Colorado
March 8th, 2013
12:16 am
This is so sad! I’ve been going there for the full 41 years and always loved it! Another Atlanta tradition gone, not surprising! When’s Atlanta going to learn?
sandra
March 8th, 2013
12:21 am
I love going there sometimes when I was in the area. Gonna miss it.
Al
March 8th, 2013
12:25 am
at the end of the day this place was a restaurant people – if the food stinks, they will sink. this ship was taking on water for years. it’s really nice that some people met their spouses here, but that doesn’t change the fact that the FOOD (the actual thing that matters in this discussion) was BAD. very bad (with one or two exceptions im sure, but on the whole, BAD).
and this whole argument about Emory students feeling entitled – give me a break. the restaurant moved to accept Emory cards? OH WOW THAT’S A GAME CHANGER!! come on. the food people. lets talk about the food.
Al
March 8th, 2013
12:28 am
and also, the talk about losing an “Atlanta tradition” – Atlanta has an amazing, growing, evolving food culture – institutions like everybodys that just lingered and lingered and continued to get worse and worse for years without improvement is the REAL insult to the “Atlanta tradition.”
Dylan
March 8th, 2013
1:09 am
So sad to hear it! My first job was at the restaurant as pizza delivery girl. I learned so much from my time there and all the great folks who worked there. Lived on lunch special pizza I snatched out of the kitchen while casually passing by after depositing my car illegally in the lot- thanks for looking the other way, guys! And good luck with the next step.
Pizza Man
March 8th, 2013
1:40 am
This is sad new especially since Jaggers is also closed. Jaggers was THE BEST pizza. I was SO glad when it reopened in Sage Hill, but he just couldn’t afford to keep it open anymore after I moved out of state. LOL!
MrBill
March 8th, 2013
3:54 am
How hard can it be to put tomato sauce on dough? Keep Gushing or Hating it’s what we do in the U.S. now.
Name (required)
March 8th, 2013
6:40 am
If Fellini’s was better than Everybody’s, they were screwed. How Fellini’s gets away with calling that crap “pizza” I will never know. Decent salad, however
SorryToHearIt
March 8th, 2013
7:29 am
My family loves the pizza at Everybody’s. I was sick when I was born, and spent a week in NICU. When I was released, my mom and dad parked at the bank across the street and dad went in to get an Everybody’s Pizza. They sat in the bank parking lot and drank beer and ate Everybody’s. That was almost 38 years ago. My husband and I announced our engagement there. We’ve been going there my whole life. None of us think the pizza sucked, we love it. Sorry everyone doesn’t agree about the food, but the restaurant and the food will always hold great memories for us.
Mark
March 8th, 2013
7:37 am
I didn’t see anything that said the place was failing. It said “retiring from the business.” After 41 years, I’m probably going to close my business too, that is if I make it 41 years. For those that are knocking the food, you don’t last 41 years in the restaurant business with bad product. I’ve only been once, when I was photographing part of the 1996 Olympic team as they visited kids at the hospital around the corner. I don’t remember it being bad, but I do remember intending to come back one day. Looks like it’ll have to be very soon.
Boog`
March 8th, 2013
7:52 am
The chainification of Atlanta continues unabated…
Danny L
March 8th, 2013
8:00 am
Sad…my friends and I hung out there countless times in the early seventies. It was a fun place to be with a lot of good memories..
Rich
March 8th, 2013
8:00 am
I had my first gourmet pizza here in 1979. The fresh tomato slices on top were a new found delight
Lea
March 8th, 2013
8:04 am
When I was in college in Macon in the 70’s, we used to go to Everybody’s whenever any of our friends had a birthday. We would “kidnap” them, hope in a car and head for Atlanta. So sad to see this go!
Brooke
March 8th, 2013
9:02 am
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
ebird
March 8th, 2013
9:13 am
I am not commenting on food good or bad. They had to do something right to be in business for 41 years. I moved OTP 5 years ago, and now have less choice in non chain establishments, and I miss that part of life ITP. It has been a long time since I at at Everybody’s, but I will remember it fondly and say thanks for the memories.
Inside The Perimeter » Another Workout-less Week In The Books
March 8th, 2013
9:18 am
[...] Read That Everybody’s Pizza Is Closing There is an article in today’s AJC mentioning that the Everybody’s Pizza in Emory Village is closing. While I [...]
Marsh
March 8th, 2013
9:54 am
Congratulations to all the turds that are so happy a local business is shutting down. Yeah, 41 years in business is a real “epic fail” as you morons would have said 15 mins ago, when that was “cool.” Just giddy with anticipation over what the next 15 minutes will bring!
The owners and staff should be proud of making an institution work, for a while, in a now increasingly disposable society. Best wishes to all of them. But not you, Al (Queada).
Helen
March 8th, 2013
10:49 am
Everybody’s has been the favorite for us, and our guests for quick bites ever since we moved to Emory in 2003. My daughter is currently attending College in Maryland, and forwarded us the news of closing. She could not belive it, and so do we. All of us will miss dearly THE Restaurant.
HB
March 8th, 2013
11:13 am
This is actually very very sad. This place is so special to Emory Students. It is one of the places in Emory Village that MADE it Emory Village. As an alum, it is sad to see them go. Bless them for those years.
Ray
March 8th, 2013
11:23 am
I took my wife there for our first date in 1980. We were both students at Emory. We go back every year on that date (Jan 29) and I always ask the wait staff if they were working there in 1980 (usually results in strange looks). I think they have the best pizza anywhere (including Chicago) It is a shame to see so many good mom/pop places closing now. There was a good pizza place called Ida’s on PleasantHill Rd that also just closed. It is hard to believe places with good food cannot make a good at it but I suppose this is just the economy
Thanks for all the great memories Everybody’s
Ray
Thanks for all
Mickey
March 8th, 2013
12:01 pm
Our family grew up with the company and ate there often. It was a unique experience that we will always remember. It will be missed.
Dana Payne
March 8th, 2013
12:06 pm
I heard this on 11 Alive news this morning and it is very depressing. I live in west cobb and we have for over 20 years eaten here. Why don’t someone just buy it and keep it open? It seems like such a waste to close.
This is the best pizza/salad around. We even have an made of concoction we call our “special brew” when we eat there, which is, pitcher of Miller draft with a bottle of Guinness
poured in.
Please someone buy it and keep it open!!!!
JohnS
March 8th, 2013
12:17 pm
Crawford Moran the brew master at 5 Seasons Brewing is taking it over. It will become a brewpub and pizza place called Slice and Pint.
Marie Let's Eat
March 8th, 2013
12:17 pm
I never had a bad experience here, not since my first visit in 1987. There are certainly pizza places in the city that I’ve enjoyed more, but a much larger number that I’ve enjoyed less. Happy retirement to you, Andy!
Linda Standifer
March 8th, 2013
12:33 pm
When I was in seminary in the late 80’s, Everybody’s Pizza was our special treat! My daughter and I loved eating there. We don’t live in Atlanta anymore, so we will just remember the place as if it’s still there! I Jaggers still down the street, or did a some chain get it, too?
truth
March 8th, 2013
12:56 pm
Al – betting you are probably one of those whiny entitled students who assume that the entire Druid Hills area should be an extension of Emory. That you can park wherever you want in any neighborhood, that all restaurants, even in the Highlands, should accept the “Emory card”, and that come graduation time, the ENTIRE 5 mile radius around Emory should shut down in deference to your school. Your idea of “good food” is probably the chain-based gruel served up with french fries.