The Untold Truth Of BJ's Brewhouse

With as many restaurant chains as there are in the United States, it would be almost impossible to have eaten at every single one. Especially as so many are regional, and so many have shut down certain locations, you might not have even heard of some restaurant chains that other people across the country can't get enough of. And if you've never heard of BJ's Brewhouse, you certainly aren't alone. The restaurant has plenty of locations, but there aren't that many on the East Coast, for instance, and other areas as well.

BJ's Brewhouse, then, might not even be on your radar — but it should be. The chain is akin to Chili's or even The Cheesecake Factory, with a large menu all at reasonable prices. Really, the untold truth of BJ's Brewhouse is intriguing, even if you've never eaten at the chain restaurant. So, keep reading to learn more about the franchise and how the unsuspecting casual eatery has managed to become such a success over the years.

If you were to step into a BJ's Brewhouse today, you would probably be pretty impressed at just how many different items they have on their menu. They have appetizers like Ahi Poke, chicken wings, sliders, and more, and their entrees are impressive too. You can get Jambalaya, Spicy Peanut Chicken, and Prime Rib all at the same place. But back when BJ's Brewhouse first got started, there was only one thing on their menu, and it might shock you: pizza!

According to their website, BJ's Brewhouse first got its start as a pizza joint, serving up Southern California pizza. And while their menu has obviously expanded since then, they still pay homage to their humble beginnings with 18 signature pizzas, ranging from a tavern-cut style to deep-dish, and even custom creations. Additionally, the pizza at BJ's Brewhouse isn't just like any other pizza. "We craft our hand-pressed deep dish pizza dough to be double-proofed, which means it rises twice," they describe on their website. Clearly, BJ's has come a long way over the years, but it's always been a place to grab a great slice of pizza, that's for sure.

If there's one thing that BJ's Brewhouse is known for among its many devoted fans, it's their famous dessert. And BJ's doesn't just serve up your typical desserts found at most chain restaurants like mediocre cake or ice cream. On the contrary, most of BJ's dessert menu is comprised of one thing that they invented: the Pizookie. Yes, it sounds weird, but the Pizookie is really just a pizza-cookie, and BJ's Brewhouse is famous for them.

The Pizookie is simply just a cookie made like a pizza, in a deep-dish skillet, topped with ice cream and sometimes some other toppings like sauces, syrups, nuts, or chocolate chips. And there are a ton of flavors to choose from, too. There's a peanut butter Pizookie, white chocolate macadamia nut Pizookie, cookies n' cream Pizookie, and a strawberry shortcake Pizookie, just to name a few. It might seem odd that BJ's Brewhouse only offers Pizookie's and ice cream floats on their dessert menu, but when you have an item as loved as the Pizookie, it makes sense.

BJ's Brewhouse isn't just a chain restaurant purely focused on revenue and profits. Obviously, it's important to the restaurant to make enough money to continue working, paying their employees well, and just operate smoothly. But it's clear that BJ's Brewhouse also cares about making enough money to donate to charitable foundations and stay involved in each restaurant's local community.

Specifically, BJ's launched BJ's Restaurants Foundation, a non-profit which has, according to its website, donated to over 100 charities, "including Habitat for Humanity, Special Olympics, Girls Inc. and countless children's charities." Additionally, BJ's Brewhouse also runs fundraisers for local schools, offers local schools the opportunity to participate in their Awesome Achievement program which rewards students with a free kid's meal for successful school work, and many employees volunteer in their communities through the BJ's Restaurants Foundation. The chain clearly wants to be seen as altruistic, and there's no denying that they are involved in the community and generous as well.

In terms of making sure their customers have a smooth and easy dining experience when they eat at a BJ's Brewhouse, the chain has created a pretty impressive phone app. The app has been hailed by others in the restaurant business, and is even being touted as the new "industry standard" by Food Digital.

Not only does the app allow customers to place to-go orders and pay for them, but diners can also place an order for a dine-in experience, and even pay for it all from their phone. More than that, consumers can even put their name on the waitlist on the way to the restaurant to cut down on how long they have to wait for a table. "We're not trying to duplicate an express lunch where you're on super-speed time, and the great thing about those two functionalities within our app [Dine-In Order Ahead and Mobile Pay] is that they do speed up the experience greatly, but you almost don't notice it," Former CEO Greg Trojan told FSR Magazine (via Food Digital). "You sit down, have a relaxed conversation, and think: that was a 35-minute experience, not a 55-minute experience, and that's great." So, if you need a quick meal, download the BJ's app before heading in!

Because the COVID19 pandemic changed the way that restaurants operated, BJ's Brewhouse also had to shift some things as 2020 turned into 2021. Specifically, in 2021, when things in the United States started to return to normal, like many restaurants, BJ's Brewhouse found itself with a labor shortage. In fact, in April 2021, they reported that they needed to hire 5,000 more hourly employees, as well as over 125 managers.

But as CEO Greg Levin told FSR Magazine, the biggest priority that BJ's Brewhouse had in terms of hiring employees was to make sure they could find people who enjoyed working there and wanted to continue to do so. "The ability to hold on to those from a long-term perspective or sustainability, as we said, really comes down to making sure we've got the right team members on there," Levin explained. "They're working the correct amount of hours and the right shifts so that they like and love working at BJ's from that standpoint." As BJ's Brewhouse tries to hire more people, only time will tell how things will pan out in the long run.