It's a busy day at Hard Knox Pizzeria as the clock ticks down to Thanksgiving.
"We didn't expect it to get busy on our Monday and Tuesday, that's usually our slow day
so it's starting to pick up. We expect it to be super busy tonight,” kitchen manager Quanelo Evans said Wednesday.
That rush means changes to meet the demand for fresh pies.
"We had to make more dough prep more items schedule more people,” explained Evans.
National pizza chains are looking to get in on the action too. Dominos Pizza was advertising a deal on their Thanksgiving pizzas right to customer’s phones on Wednesday.
It was also a busy day for takeout orders at Harby’s Pizza and Deli in North Knoxville.
Lunch time means plenty of pizzas and subs heading out the door.
"I think there's a lot of people in town traveling to see family and they don't feel like cooking all the time,” said Harby’s owner Heath Benton.
Benton has been running Harby's for about a month, so it's hard to gauge how much business has picked up compared to years past.
"Hoping it's busy to get a nice end of the year end of the quarter push,” said Benton.
For families it was a chance to catch their breath before tomorrow's cooking marathon.
"Our son just got home from college and it's our first time to enjoy ourselves together,” said Matt Feldman.
For these pizza places, the day is about more than meeting demand. It's a chance to serve families and add to their holiday memories.
“It's nice to work and give back to the community and give other people food options. We’ll have our time with the family tomorrow,” said Benton.