Big pizza, small town

Today the couple owns The Pizza Place in Lusk, a town of 1,340 people. It's the only place to pick up your favorite pie in all of Niobrara County.

Since it opened in 1996, it's become well-known for having the best pizza in the region. Locals come in once a week for their "fix" and travelers go out of their way to stop in for a bite to eat.

In November, 2010, U.S.A. Today named it one of "51 Great Pizza Parlors" in the U.S.

And it's no surprise. Everything that can be hand-made, is. They make their own dough for pizza and bread from scratch, season and grind the sausage themselves and shred and blend their own cheese. They also use fresh seasonings, pure olive oil and other high-quality ingredients.

"If we can make it better, we do," Melissa said.

It's a welcomed departure from how typical pizza joints operate, and they know first-hand.

The Wagners owned a pizza franchise in Indiana from 1987 to 1992. When it closed, they chose Lusk because Brad had family there and they had always enjoyed visiting Wyoming.

The couple planned to work other jobs during the day and just run The Pizza Place in the evenings.

"Within two hours of opening, there was a line out the front door," Brad said.

They never did get day jobs.

The restaurant takes up two store fronts, over which the Wagners live.

Over the years, all four of the Wagner's children have helped out at the restaurant. Bailey, 17, and Eli, 13, take orders and wait tables, when school and sports schedules permit.

"Sometimes they don't realize until later how much it benefits them," Melissa said.

For Ben, 22, working in the family restaurant has nurtured his passion for cooking. He recently returned to The Pizza Place after earning his associates degree in cooking at the Art institute of Colorado. Although he has The Pizza Place logo tattooed on his arm, he has plans of his own. He recently started is own catering business out of the restaurant serving up prime rib, hors d' ouevres and homemade Italian dishes for special events.

The Pizza Place is a casual restaurant that seats about 150 people. It's filled with wooden chairs, tables and paneling, all hand-made by Brad. Riffled tin contrasts with the wood panels and exposed brick walls, and elk mounts and a bear-skin rug hang on the walls.

Blues play on the speakers overhead, and if you need something to read on your lunch break, you can grab a magazine off a shelf.

Melissa recommends first-time diners try the pizza. The crust can be hand tossed or Sicilian pan style and range in price from $9.11 to $25.75, depending on the type of crust and number of toppings.

Their specialty pizzas include a meat eaters pie packed with pepperoni, Italian sausage, ham, bacon, salami, ground beef and Canadian bacon, barbecue pizza topped with grilled white meat chicken or barbecue pork with onion, barbecue sauce and cheese and taco pizza, which is topped with a seasoned blend of beans and pork with cheese, tomato, lettuce and onion and served with salsa. Specialty pizzas cost $12.49 to $28.29.

But pizza isn't the only thing they serve. The menu also boasts a variety of salads that can be ordered in whole or half sizes. Try the Italian chef salad with ham, pepperoni, salami, ripe olives, banana peppers, cheese and tomato or the orange salad, a blend of leafy greens and baby spinach topped with chicken breast, mandarin oranges, tomatoes, sliced almonds, chow mien noodles with a choice of hot or sweet sesame dressing.

Calzones can be ordered traditional style, stuffed with ricotta cheese and served with homemade pizza sauce on the side, or pizza style, packed with their special cheese blend and sauce.

The Pizza Place also serves baked subs, chicken wings, dessert pizzas topped with fruit or chocolate chips, bread sticks, cinnamon bread sticks and beer.

They occasionally offer specials and also do catering. The dinner rolls and ribs are frequently requested.

"We just really care about our good and restaurant and try to do the best we can," Brad said.