08/19/2025
Itās been a couple weeks since Iāve posted and honestly I feel bad about that. Iāve just been overwhelmed with everything going on. I havenāt even been able to keep up with comments, messages, calls, or even texts. So if I havenāt gotten back to you please donāt take it personal. Iām just a guy trying to run this shop, still learning as I go, and some days it feels like Iām barely keeping up. Iām living my dream though, so thank you.
The love and support has been insane. Because of yāall Iāve been able to bring on two more guys. Xavier and Eric. Xavierās only been here a week and heās already amazing. Ericās worked one day so far, heās awesome, and youāll see more of him soon. Anthony is still here too, mostly evenings since he works at Beckett during the day, so if you stop by at night youāll probably see him. I know I talked before about extending hours and days to be open more and thats still the plan, it just has not happened yet.
The orders have been crazy. Saturday night I had a 25 large cheese pizza order for 100 kids at Texas Pools. This Friday Iāve got another 25 large order plus 6 large cheese breads, but this one is all specialty pizzas. And Iāve even been in talks for a 50 pizza order. That slow build kinda feels like training. First cheese, then specialty, now maybe a mix of everything and double the amount. Huge shoutout to Mark Kennedy, a regular whoās become like family, for helping deliver that first big order. And my mom who was in the kitchen helping me knock it out before heading off to Mexico for a much needed break. Her and my step dad just landed a few hours ago.
The shopās been a madhouse in the best way. Iāve rearranged the kitchen multiple times trying to get the flow right. Big thanks to Chris and Doc for helping with that. Some days I spend 4 to 6 hours just making dough to keep up with demand. Some nights are wild. Like this past Sunday night I was taking orders and remembering them in my head, making pizzas, working the ovens, and still trying to connect with people. Itās a lot, but somehow it gets done.
Some cool things from the last couple weeks:
ā¢ Plano City Council ordered 14 pizzas for a meeting. I heard they loved it.
ā¢ The Green Smoke, our pizza of the month, has been a huge hit. Almost everyone whoās tried it asked if it can stay on the menu.
ā¢ People are loving the vegan cheese. Our dough is vegan too, which I didnāt even think about until people started pointing it out.
ā¢ Halal toppings are coming back in stock soon. I went three weeks without selling one and thought maybe people didnāt want it. Then over the weekend at least 10 people asked. Guess I was wrong on that one.
ā¢ Somebody compared our pizza to Michelangeloās David. Iāll carry that with me forever.
It hasnāt all been easy. Delivery is still through third party apps and sometimes it really hurts. Last Sunday two orders never made it to customers and everyone loses when that happens. It really sucks. A week and a half ago on Friday I closed early around 3 because my dough wasnāt working right. Donāt think I left, we were here all night. Most people probably wouldnāt have noticed, but I did, and it didnāt feel right to serve it. That hurt sales, but Iād rather do the right thing.
Behind the scenes Iām still figuring it all out. Payroll, scheduling, training staff, learning how to run a business, while still learning pizza. Iāve been here 100 hours a week easy this past month. But the reviews, the support, the people walking in, that makes it worth it. Iāve met so many new faces. Some from Facebook, some from Nextdoor, some just Googling pizza near me. One guy last week was driving in California, told Siri to call āHeirloom Pizza,ā and it connected him here in Plano. He was asking what concerts I had going on and I was intrigued. We talked for a few minutes. Stuff like that blows my mind.
Outside the shop my tiny home is finally coming together. I got a washer and dryer yesterday before realizing I didnāt even have the right outlet and had to call an electrician. Heās coming tomorrow to fix it. My catās been posted up on the couch like he owns the place while Iām here grinding. He might be chunky, but heās great. I still havenāt been able to bring my little corgi home yet, my momās been taking care of him. Iām hoping once the new guys are trained and I can break away to let him out and what not, Iāll finally be able to. I miss him.
So yeahā¦ just wanted to hop on here and say thank you. Thank you for coming in, for ordering, for telling your friends and family. Thank you for being patient when Iām running around like crazy trying to do ten things at once. This is still the very beginning of Heirloomās story, and Iām grateful yāall are part of it. Who knows, maybe one day itāll be Uncle Jayās Pizza like my nieces and nephews keep saying. Or maybe something else entirely. What do yāall think?
Iāll post a bunch of photos with this too. Pizzas, family, staff, behind the scenes, even at home. Just little pieces of whatās been going on these past couple weeks. Love yāall. Thank you. Truly. Ive said it before and didnt get it done, but the plan is to spend the next few hours and start getting back to everyone. Wish me luck yallš
āJustin, Owner of Heirloom Pizza:)
