We are so lucky to have an abundance and variety of restaurants that serve pizza and pasta in Edmonds. There is something for everyone in terms of style, budget and preferences.

Johnny Mo’s Pizzeria located on the second floor of the Main Street Commons is one of the newest places to open. This bustling place opened at the end of November 2023 and I waited to review it in order to give the staff time to settle into their roles.

It’s already a popular hangout and on a weekend night expect to have a considerable wait unless you get there early. Johnny Mo’s does not take reservations at their Edmonds location (they do at their Eastlake spot).

They hope to roll out their reservation system before by May. Stay tuned and check their website where you can place an order for pickup or delivery.

Main Street Commons is becoming a food Mecca. Molly Moon’s was the first tenant to open, followed by Johnny Mo’s Pizzeria, Copper Rose Bakery and Stillhouse Coffee (soft opening this week!).

I am looking forward to the opening of Ethan Stowell’s Victor Tavern but they don’t have an opening date for this location yet; you could potentially have breakfast, lunch and dinner in the same complex! There is an outdoor space for summer concerts so I am certain that it will become a great gathering place for our community.

Back to Johnny Mo’s: you can walk up or take the elevator to its second-story space. It’s a cavernous room and without any noise-reducing baffles on the ceiling so it’s loud; be prepared.

Between the buzz of conversation at the tables and the bar as well as the music it’s hard to carry on a normal conversation without raising you voice. They do have an outdoor space and I imagine that will become my preference when the weather cooperates.

We were greeted warmly and quickly by our server who took our drink orders right away — a delicious and generous traditional margarita ($12) and a Buenaveza Lager on tap ($8). The drinks menu is expansive and changes often with specialty cocktails, beers on tap and wines.

The menu is large and there is surely something for everyone in your group: appetizers, salads, calzones, sandwiches, pastas, New York style pizza (thin crust), Chicago style pizza (thick crust served in deep dish pan) and save room for dessert (although Molly Moon’s is downstairs!)

We started off with the small version of the Arugula and Prosciutto Salad that included Spring mix with baby arugula, prosciutto, gorgonzola, dried cranberries, pears, and walnuts, with housemade balsamic vinaigrette ($12).

It was more than enough to share and was a fresh, delicious way to start our meal. I just wish that the salad had been tossed with the dressing as it was challenging to dress it at the table. Personally I think it’s easier to request that the dressing be on the side if that is someone’s preference. (FYI … the ranch, blue cheese and Caesar dressings are not made in-house.)

We shared the Hot & Spicy Calzone ($16) which included meatballs, jalapenos, roasted red pepper, fresh garlic, ricotta, mozzarella and homemade tomato sauce. It arrived piping hot, oozing with cheese and the peppers provided lots of spice.

The meatballs were good but we both wished that there had been more of them inside. The fresh tomato sauce that accompanied the calzone was very good as well. We ended up only eating half and took the rest home for another meal.

Since my preference is for New York style pizza (I worked at a pizza joint in St. Louis during high school and I went to school in New Haven, where Pepe’s and Sally’s are world famous for their thin-crusted pizzas), we shared their 14-inch medium size vegetarian version with mozzarella, dollops of homemade sauce, spinach, portobello mushrooms, black olives, green peppers, roasted garlic, and topped with parmesan. ($29). I substituted artichoke hearts for the green pepper.

The pizza dough used for both the NY and Chicago pizza, as well as for the calzone is a yeasted dough that is prepared 24-48 hours in advance. They do have a gluten-free option but have a caveat on their menu clearly stating that the restaurant is not a gluten-free environment because they use shared equipment.

The flavor of the crust was spot on and the toppings were generous. However, our pizza was not hot when it arrived at the table. I enjoyed it more when I reheated it the next day and it came out of the oven crispier and piping hot.

No one wants to burn their mouth on a slice of pizza but I believe that it should come to the table hot — even if I have to wait a minute before eating it. A neighboring table of diners ordered several Chicago style pizzas and said that they were tasty … but also could have been hotter in temperature.

We saved room for dessert to enjoy their Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie, which arrives at the table in a cast-iron pan with three scoops of Tillamook vanilla ice cream and Hersey’s Chocolate sauce ($12).

I have worked professionally in many bakeries and the taste of the cookie was good — but unfortunately it was overbaked and was not the ooey-gooey confection that I was expecting.

Ralph Abraham, the front-of-house manager, said that the cookie was made in-house. If that’s the case they need to find a better recipe — seriously!

There are lots of chocolate chip cookie recipes available that would make your customers return just for dessert. I would start by using regular-sized chocolate chips instead of mini chips. A skillet cookie should be soft and oozing with melted chocolate. Did this prevent us from devouring it? Of course not! The portion could easily serve four people, too.

Johnny Mo’s is a great addition to the Edmonds downtown dining scene. There is a lot of competition for pizza and pasta in all of Edmonds (many of which I have already reviewed), but it already seems that this place has a good following.

Like so many new places the staff at Johnny Mo’s, is still working on their pacing (getting the food to the table hot), the servers are still learning the menu of food and drinks and the noise level needs some adjustment. But for a fun night out for drinks and pizza, this is a neighborhood place to bring your family and friends.

Location: 558 Main Street, Suite 200 (upstairs but there is an elevator available), Edmonds
Phone: 425-835-0911 (no reservations taken)
Hours: Monday-Sunday, noon-9 p.m.

— Story and photos by Deborah Binder

Deborah Binder lives in Edmonds with her family. She loves to cook from scratch using produce from the gardens she created and maintains with her husband. She attended culinary school on the East Coast and focused on desserts, pastries and bread. She’s worked for restaurants and caterers in the front and back of the house (kitchen) on both coasts. Her current interest in food is learning to eat for health and wellness, while at the same time enjoying the pleasures of the table. Deborah loves experimenting and developing new recipes. As Julia Child once said, “Everything in moderation including butter.” Deborah can be contacted at jaideborah@yahoo.com.