Heath Hester, 31, gave up years of teaching to pursue his dream of owning a pizza shop.
That dream came to fruition on Nov. 29 when the Lakeland native opened “Pizza Daddy’s” inside the Lake Morton Market and Deli at 811 E. Palmetto Street. It’s open Wednesday through Sunday, from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m.
“I’ve always had a passion for pizza. I always wanted to open my own restaurant. This is like a perfect start. The neighborhood has been great. Everyone has been really receptive,” said Hester.
Hester said he wouldn’t have been able to open the shop without the help of friends and family. The Rochelle School of the Arts and Lakeland High School graduate quit teaching math and science at Edgar L. Padgett Elementary School last spring and started working at pizza shops in Tampa, learning the craft. A lifelong pizza lover, from there he began to create his own recipes and test them on Tampa bar-goers over this past summer.
“I would go outside bars, in like a tent, bars that didn’t sell food, and I’d just sell pizza outside the bars. That went really well. I could make enough money but it was just a lot to set up a whole pizza oven and I just wanted to find my own spot. But, I did that for like a month or two, testing out different dough recipes. Different sauce recipes. Different brands of cheeses and pepperonis,” Hester said.
In the fall, while walking into his neighborhood deli, he realized it had a commercial kitchen that was available for lease.
“It all happened really fast. It wasn’t supposed to happen that fast … It went from no name, no idea, no concept to the whole thing in like a month or two. It’s crazy,” Hester said. “I had a friend of a friend make the logo. The menu I made. I’ve had a lot of help from a lot of people.”
Hester said the Lake Morton community has shown him so much support, posting in the neighborhood group and in other local Facebook food groups like “Polk County Restaurants & Reviews” to let folks know the food locale exists.
“I would literally be standing in front of the pizza oven selling no pizzas if it wasn’t for the community. I didn’t have time to advertise or post anything, and so the community coming in and saying ‘Oh, we love this pizza place’ and spreading it, (without them) we may not be here right now,” Hester said. “They have brought in so much business and have been so supportive and nice.”
Other restauranteurs also lent a hand. Chris McArthur, who owns Black and Brew, wrote on his Facebook page: “Run, don’t walk to Pizza Daddy’s. This hidden gem is located in the Lake Morton Deli … Outstanding pizza made with high quality ingredients. The dough is the best in Lakeland. Not even a contest.”
Ryan Neal, a close friend who owns Sabu Ramen inside the Joinery food hall in downtown Lakeland, was really helpful during his opening week. “He just came in and worked a couple hours as a cashier. Him coming in was like crucial,” Hester said.
According to Hester, his artisan pizzas are unique because the pizza dough is made in-house, and the tomato sauce is made from scratch. He said he also uses quality brands of cheese and pepperonis.
“Our bestseller is ‘Not your Momma’s.’ It’s spinach, ricotta, pepperoni and mushroom. That’s definitely our best pizza … Our ‘Grandpa’s farm’ is our meat lovers. It has meatballs, sausage, ham, bacon and pepperonis. That’s really popular as well,” Hester explained.
Besides specialty and cheese pizzas, Pizza Daddy’s also serves wings, flatbread subs, chicken tenders, fries, balls of dough seasoned with Italian seasoning called “dough poppers” and “cheezy bread.”
While he was bold enough to go for his dreams, like any other entrepreneur, imposter syndrome and negative thoughts still sometimes creep into Hester’s head and make him nervous.
“I am scared. I am nervous. I am terrified we’re going to show up and no one is going to come all day long and I’m going to go bankrupt and I’m not going to be able to pay the loan back … That normal stuff. Honestly, that’s the worst. I’d say that’s the biggest challenge,” Hester said.
Pizza Daddy’s isn’t the only new offering in the East Palmetto Street corridor, which is conveniently located across from the Lakeland Public Library and the Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College.
Peach House and Mootown Scoops
“The Peach House” is set to open in the repurposed historic home that used to house the Red Door at 733 E. Palmetto St. One of its operators is Jeannie Weaver Lopez, who owns the Revival cocktail bar in downtown Lakeland.
The Lakeland City Commission voted unanimously in June to transfer a conditional use permit from the Red Door’s owner, Richard DeAngelis, to Peach House Lakeland LLC. The conditional use permit calls for “maximum indoor seating capacity of 47 seats, associated alcoholic beverage sales of beer, wine and liquor, and outdoor seating” for 43.
An opening date and details about the menu, décor, hours and theme have not yet been announced.
At 719 E. Palmetto St., closer to Lake Morton and next door to Mr. Fish, there is a recently renovated historic three-unit building. Landlord Scott Kontny, who owns LoanTrust Mortgage, said Michigan Bros LLC has signed a lease and is expected to open an ice cream shop in Unit 3 some time in April.
The Michigan Bros — Jose Martinez and Max Miller — have submitted plans for a Motown-themed shop called Mootown Scoops.
“I am super excited about Mootown. I think the foot traffic around the area and with the library across the street will make them very successful,” said Scott Kontny.
Kontny said he’s in negotiations with a med spa to occupy the building’s other two units.
719 E. Palmetto Street
Built in 1925 by the Linebergers, the building originally housed a grocery store and pharmacy until the 1940s. In the 1950s, it also housed the Lake Morton Barber Shop, Kontny said. According to Polk County property records, the Linebergers sold the building to the Bronson family in 1973, and Kontny said Mr. Bronson used it to operate the Lakeland Rubber Stamp.
Then, it was sold to a Marco’s Pizza franchisee in 2017, who Kontny said backed out when they realized the extent of renovations needed. That’s when Kontny and business partner, Ryan Smith, who owns KL Smith Roofing, used their LLC, 3CP LLC, to purchase the building in September of 2020 for $332,000, according to Kontny.
“This project has brought me to love older buildings and the history that lies within the walls. I have reached out to some of the Linebergers and hopefully next fall we will have an official naming ceremony to name the building for the original builder. I’m still looking for some more local Linebergers to get some pictures or more history on the building. I have spent countless hours looking into this building’s history and have loved every minute of it!” Kontny said.
But the project hasn’t been entirely joyful. Kontny said they’ve had to overcome quite a few hurdles.
“The property was in major disrepair when we bought it. We basically gutted it to the shell and started over. (The) biggest hurdle was getting equipment and water. The city’s drill truck was down and couldn’t get parts during (the pandemic) so we basically had to wait. (It was the) same with electrical equipment,” Kontny explained.
The original plan for the building was to turn it into a mini food hall and open in 2021, but Kontny said that didn’t work out.
“We were approached by another local restauranteur about building it out into three separate restaurant units like a mini Joinery. We loved the idea and spent almost a year trying to go from concept to reality and in the end the parking didn’t work for the group to get the liquor license they needed to make a successful run,” Kontny explained.
Kontny said the project has taught him to be patient and said “the city has been very accommodating but with COVID, everything took time.”
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the spelling of Heath Hester’s name.
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So glad things are looking up for the greatest neighborhood in Lakeland.. Pizza and ice cream what a great night out…
Pizza Daddy’s is owned by Heath Hester not Phester. Ginger Cannon