Matt Nelms first opened the doors of Matt's Smalltown Pizza in April 1998 — back when his original location sat over behind the animal hospital, long before Main Street became the destination it is today. He moved to his current home at 53 Main Street in November 2011, into a building that holds more history than most people realize. For decades, that space was Hutchinson Hardware — a Senoia staple, the kind of place where the whole town showed up. Matt's grandfather and father both worked there part time. Now Matt works those same walls every day, feeding the same community his family served long before he ever fired up a pizza oven.
That kind of generational connection runs through everything about the place. Matt's customers are foodies — people who appreciate great ingredients and aren't looking for the same pizza they can get anywhere else. And they come from all walks of life. Families, regulars, festival-goers, first-timers — the door is open for everyone.
What keeps people coming back is the hometown feel. His servers know customers by name and by order. And then there's Matt himself — most people don't realize he's actually there, in the kitchen, supervising and cooking every day. First-time customers sometimes ask if they can meet him just to confirm he's real. His longtime regulars already know the answer.
Being on Main Street puts Matt right in the middle of the action — the monthly festivals and concerts bring new faces through the door constantly, and plenty of them become regulars before long.
Come in, grab a slice, enjoy a local craft beer or a glass of wine, and taste what 27 years of doing it right looks like.