Coming home to pizza

STAPLES, Minn. — When Eric Neznik moved back to his hometown after a career as a country singer, he never expected to run a local pizza place. However, that is exactly what happened when he became the owner of Tower Pizza in downtown Staples.

“We are proud to provide good smiles, a good experience and a great pizza,” Neznik said. “Tower Pizza has been here for a long time and has a lot of history. (It is) a gem for this community.”

Tower Pizza offers an array of homemade pizzas, wings, appetizers, salads and pastas. Neznik and his wife, Alissa, operate it alongside about two dozen part-time employees. Some of their most popular items include the Tower Supreme; the Powerhouse, which features five meats; and the Northwoods Special, a version with wild rice, sausage and mushrooms.

The restaurant also showcases a pizza of the month, which allows Neznik and his team to experiment in the kitchen.

“One of our pizzas of the month that landed on the permanent menu is the ‘Let’s Make a Dill’, with a ranch base, bacon and dill pickles,” Neznik said. “We always give credit where credit is due and put the name of the person who thought of it with it. We have a number of folks who come in here every month just to try the pizza of the month.”

Tower Pizza makes its own dough and sauce for pizzas and breadsticks. The business goes through 650 pounds of cheese in a week on average. Neznik said that generally in the pizza industry, there is a 6-point drop system. For example, if a pizza is 16 inches, 10 ounces of cheese is used, but Tower Pizza uses a 5-point system for cheese giving each pizza extra cheese.

“People love cheese, and it makes all of our pizzas taste that much better,” Neznik said.

Neznik is a Staples native, but moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to launch his country music career. In 2018, Neznik moved back to Staples to get a fresh start.

“After a divorce, I moved back for what I thought would be a few weeks,” Neznik said. “But the familiarity of the area wrapped around me.”

After a couple of months, Neznik began working at a local event center. Roger Houselog, the previous owner of Tower Pizza, regularly teased Neznik about purchasing the business.

In late 2020, with no room for growth at his job, Neznik said he and his girlfriend at the time, Alyssa, decided to talk with Houselog.

“We knew it was a risk, but it felt like the right thing,” Neznik said. “I was a country singer up until that point, but I had met Alissa, and she had four kids. My life changed so much in a short amount of time; it was crazy.”

The couple married Feb. 28, 2021, and the following day, they took over as owners of Tower Pizza.

“It was all a learning curve,” Neznik said. “Every day that first year, there was something that I had to figure out how to do. When I took over, there was no digital point of sale system; everything was still manual.”

Many of the current employees were with Tower Pizza even before Neznik’s ownership. Most have a main job in addition to working at the pizza place or are students, Neznik said.

“I have led a band for many years, but this crew is much larger and a much younger group, which means there is a lot they are still learning about the world around them,” Neznik said.

According to Neznik, he and Alissa love to watch kids start out at 14, shy and unsure, before they gain confidence and grow into who they are.

From employees to guests, Neznik said his favorite aspect of the business is the people.

“A lot of them (guests) I have known forever, and I love being able to pop out here and catch up with them when I can,” Neznik said.

He said the Tower Pizza in Staples was one of four satellite locations of the original business in Brainerd, which was founded in 1977. The Staples location was opened in 1984 in a building that was constructed in 1897. The Staples location is the only one still in operation today.

“I remember growing up here and getting Tower Pizza,” Neznik said. “The great thing about pizza is that people can eat in any economic setting. It’s great for families.”

Providing a quality product for an affordable rate is important for Neznik and his team.

“One thing we talk about at our team meetings is that we know we serve one of the most expensive pizzas in the area, so we have to earn each guest’s business by making a quality product,” Neznik said. “Everybody is trying to get by, and we are grateful for those who are willing to buy our pizza.