Joe Bologna’s

Restaurant was ok — wait entirely too long for the quality…
My review could be skewed because I was told how great it was so I had high expectations…
The prices seemed high for the quality as well…
I also realize that in general most people have a higher tolerance for lower quality and service — so this is probably a 4 star for those with lower standards

Want to drink beer at the pulpit of a former synagogue? Joe B’s is your place! The bar of this restaurant is situated right where I imagine the pulpit once was. The stained glass is stunning, and I recommend asking for a table near it in the back or on the second level of the restaurant, especially for first timers. The fettucinni alfredo here is fantastic and my husband loves their spaghetti and meatballs. Most entrees come with a huge «signature» breadstick. I ask for mine with marinara for dipping. Lately, my go-​to is their Buffalo Chicken Pizza, which is out-​of-​this world and excellent dipped in ranch! It’s on special most Mondays as an individual-​sized pizza, so perfect for your lunch hour. This place gets packed on UK game nights and other weekend evenings, but as a couple you can sometimes slide into the bar, order, eat, and leave while others are still waiting for a table. Best of all, Joe Bologna and one of his daughers still work here– you’ll find him with his glasses and suspenders walking around the restaurant and greeting guests. Love supporting local small business owners. The excellent food and vibe here are just bonuses. :)

Worst service ever!!! Sat for literally 25 minutes and was never once passed by a server or even asked for our drink order. Feel terrible for the people that were there, hope someone came by eventually. Used to be a great place, sad.

It was a very unique place to eat. The setting was inside an old church. There was no wait on a Friday night at 8.
The menus were old, worn and dirty. Their wine selection was very poor. I ordered a salad and spaghetti with meat sauce and a breadstick. The salad was very generic. There was nothing special about it but it was still good. The spaghetti was good too. I wasn’t wowed but I still enjoyed it. The breadstick was where it’s at though. It’s served in its own tub of garlic butter. Mmmmm. The bread was so soft, fluffy and warm. Delicious.
The service was ok and there weren’t any big complaints. We had a good dinner and enjoyed our time there. I would go back if someone else wanted to but it’s not a place I would seek out on my own.

Been coming here since 1997 since it moved to this locate was down the street. I come in the Lexington at least for five times a year this is a must try in the local area food is excellent the services or somewhere off of gotten everything from spaghetti to pizza two salads everything is very good. There’s times where we been here for a weekend and kids want to eat here twice

Went there last night, worst service we ever had & food was horrible, so very disappointed! Will not be back for a long time.

Joe B’s is a Lexington tradition from way back. I remember as a little kid seeing their TV ads — a crazy Italian guy with a push cart — and being really excited when we got to go for a family pizza. A few decades later they took over a synagogue near campus and remade it into a cool-​looking sit-​down place. They’ve been there for quite a while now and not much has changed. The giant bread sticks are worth a try — be ready for it to arrive in a moat of drippy, buttery, garlic-​infused goodness. Saving the left-​over garlic stick butter for your pizza crust is a popular strategy, as well. Their main-​stays are the pizzas. Their meatball pizzas stand out as particularly tasty and very filling. Don’t be afraid to try the deep dish. It’s not crazy-​overloaded and quite tasty. Of course they have entrees too. I often get the manicotti and it’s pretty good, but simple. Their tomato sauce has a sweet edge to it, which can be a little too sweet in non-​meat dishes. The entrees come with one of the delicious breadsticks-​in-​butter-​boats and a salad for about $ 15. Quite reasonable even with a $ 2 soda. They have a bar and a nice selection of beers as well as a lot of diet soda choices (rare!). Their pizza is better in-​house than trying to get it to your house — it is at it’s best piping hot. The ambiance is nice but getting dated. The parking can be a nightmare on the weekends, but they’ve been working on extending the parking around that area, so it should be better soon.

I have been here twice and it is def a UK/​Lexington pizza institute! You must eat here… period! The bread sticks are all the rave, I was not a fan but I did try it and it wasn’t terrible just not something I care to eat. I had the lasagna and it was tasty! I took my family and ordered the Mexican pizza and it was wow wow wow good!!! So good! Next time I will order thin crust however, the hand toss is a bit too much dough for me but still good! My kids loved their food and the mozzarella sticks were yummy! My husband had the eggplant parmigiana sandwich and he loved it! It was a hit with our family. Cool setting also, almost feel like you can’t talk that loud because well you are in a church lol! Cool spot for sure!

We were nearby when we decided to get pizza — found that Joe B’s was nearby and had good reviews. We were very happy with the service and food.
Our server was Nathan — he was very friendly and did a great job.
The restaurant is in what used to be a church, built in 1891. — cool decorations for a pizza place.

We were riding further south, tired so price lined a room and then looked for food. Joe Bologna’s sounded like fun. Oh. My. Goodness! It was all you can eat spaghetti night and one serving was all I could eat! Great salad with homemade thousand island and a giant soft breadstick in its own little serving dish with garlic butter! Yum! I think we’ll just have to stop here more often!

This is definitely one of my favorite places for out-​of-​towners. It’s something Lexington has that you just can’t get anywhere else.
If you go here, if you try anything, you must order a breadstick. Crispy and golden outside, soft enough to pull apart, and too big to entirely fit inside the silver plate it’s served on (which, not to mention, is filled with melted garlic butter). Om nom.
While the other entrees look tasty from what I’ve seen, I’ve always gravitated toward the pizzas. This past weekend we got two specialties… One small Mexican and one small Supreme. The Mexican definitely brought the heat, with some refried beans, spicy taco meat, onions, jalapeños, black olives, and Mexican cheese. So good. The Supreme definitely offered a variety of toppings I wasn’t really expecting to go together (but did beautifully!). They really went with everything, from onions, pepperoni, sliced sausage, black olives, pineapple, banana peppers, and the kitchen sink. They offered to customize it, but I’m glad we didn’t.
Food aside (hard for me to say), I love the atmosphere of this restaurant. It’s nestled in the heart of an old church, stained glasses windows, pulpit and all! And boy, do they turn out some good food.
This place is a local institution that everyone should try at least once.

I’m guessing one day my loved ones will find me face down in a bowl of garlic butter here. Love of pizza is subjective like many things in life, but I love this place. It is a Lexington classic. If you are I town give it a whirl. It is an experience and you might get the honor of talking to Joe!

Pros: food was good. Located in a Pretty, old church. Service was good & breadsticks are great!
Cons: food was very expensive and was only good not outstanding. Pizza was just Okay. $ 18 for a plate of pasta, no thank you!

I hit Joe B.‘s last weekend and was happy to find it similar to the Joe B.‘s of old. The food was just as good as it’s ever been, including the breadstick which has been locally famous for years. I was disappointed that the potato soup wasn’t on the menu this day and chose pizza instead. If you love potato soup, try Joe’s. It’s CRAZY good.
The reason I didn’t load Joe B.‘s up on the stars was due to the waiter. Do you know that feeling you get when you get the last, stale cupcake? That’s the way this guy left me feeling. He was no more at Joe B.‘s than my dog was. He was flighty and forgetful and almost rude. I know that’s not typical at Joe B.‘s, so I’ll be back. I will sit in a section other than that of this waiter, however.

Probably the best pizza I’ve ever eaten (not to mention the fabulous breadsticks and pasta dishes). I’ve been eating at Joe’s since I was a kid, yet I still have never had a bad experience. My favorite pizza is the four cheese which I add pepperoni and fresh Italian sausage to. This is by far one of the best restaurants I have eaten at and will continue to be.

I seriously had never been to Joe B’s. I mean, I’ve had the pizza many times, but never had I gotten a chance to visit the one of a kind brick and mortar. It was apparently a former synagogue, which is apparently not the same as a church, like I’d heard that it was. The stained glass windows that still remain, give it a unique atmosphere.
We started with the famous bread stick. It’s not complimentary as one would think, but it was well worth the $ 2 price tag. It’s a mix between a loaf and a stick. I assume it’s hand kneaded, because of its odd shape. The salty melted butter that it sat in was phenomenal and obviously part of what the rave is about.
My husband and daughter ordered the Supreme Sicilian pizza and I ordered the chef salad. The chef salad indicates that it comes with cucumber, peppers, olives and tomatoes, but if you don’t like those, don’t fret because there were only two of each and easy to pick off. To top off the chef salad, I got to choose an additional three items from a list that consists of mostly cheeses and proteins. I chose provolone cheese and it was actually slices of cheese, cut up into pieces, but it was tasty. I also chose turkey and mushrooms. My favorite part of the salad was the dressing that I chose. I noticed this dressing listed on the menu to accompany the spinach salad, and thought that hot bacon dressing sounded interesting, and it was. That was a first for me, hot dressing on a salad.
Their pizza was less than hot, so the waitress took it back and ran it back through the warmer. They said it was then perfect, but by the time that they got it back, I was finished with my salad. Plus, because of sanitation reasons, I found it odd that they took touched food back into to kitchen. Maybe I’m just funny like that, because they didn’t complain a bit, and the waitress acted like it was a common thing. I will say that it was loaded with toppings, but I’m not sure that it was worth the $ 20+ for a medium sized pizza.
I will say that it’s one of the few local, non franchise pizza places in Lexington… so if you love pizza and support local, give it a whirl.

Hold the phone. You mean there is a restaurant that exists, in this universe, on this planet, that is a former Jewish temple converted into a kick ass Italian eatery? Well hot damn, this Irish Buddhist Catholic half brohemium-​dudeoxide just found his personal culinary casa. Furthermore, «Shlomo».
Looking over the menu while chomping on the giant breadstick with my lady I could not find anything that I didn’t want to order. After a quick discussion we were well on our way to getting a pepperoni pizza with two house salads and a craft of wine. I’m not picky when it comes to eating pizza. It was pretty pretty pretty damn good, not to greasy and the crust was perfect (in relation to other similar pizza’s I’ve facially inhaled).
Sure, it is not the coolest looking pizza joint out there by any means, and though I did not get a chance to try any of the Italian offerings, I left full and pleased. I’m most certain we will be back to try more pizza’s and other dishes.
In conclusion, «Shlomo».

One of my favorite restaurants in Lexington, hands down. The chef and spinach salads are fantastic. They offer a wide selection of pizzas including: buffalo chicken and a veggie pizza. However, the breadsticks are my absolute favorite. Literally a foot long with homemade garlic butter and marinara, yum!
Yesterday, I was cleaning out my wallet and dropped a bond under the booth along with a scarf I was knitting. The bond had my grandparents address and two employees drove to my grandparents house out in Hamburg to return them. I cannot even begin to express my gratitude and admiration for all things Joe Bologna’s. The food is AMAZING and I truly believe they have the best staff in town. I’m absolutely blown away by the kindness the staff expressed to my family and I! Above and beyond, fantastic, superb and every other correlating adjective imaginable!!! Thank you so much!!! You guys are the ABSOLUTE best!!!

My daughter was in from college last night so we took her to someplace she said she had never been. She picked Joe B’s because I wanted pizza. My daughter had the Fettuccine Alfredo and her friend had the Lasagna. Both said the food was excellent. My wife and I had the 16″ pizza. The taste was good but wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. There were some issues. It was busy and took a while for a waitress to greet the table. We ordered the 16″ pizza but the pizza that arrived was a 12″. Waitress had never noticed until we ask about it. She made it right by giving us another 12″ pizza. All things said, I will go back. Sometimes things happen.

The atmosphere is the best part of this restaurant. You walk into a building that was once a synagogue and before that a church with stained glass, dark wood, and typical pizza place red booths. It’s not an annoying hipster contrived look, it’s a place that has character. It’s a great place for a casual date or to hang out with friends and family. However, the bathrooms are in desperate need of a remodel.
Yesterday I had the spaghetti with meat sauce lunch special. For $ 6.95 that included the pasta, one of their huge garlic breadsticks, and a small green salad-​a great value for that price! The breadstick was thick, warm, and served in a metal tin with the garlic butter sauce underneath. This breadstick is what Joe Bologna’s is famous for, and deservedly so. My salad looked on the brink of going bad, but still fresh enough to eat and the pasta was good.