Mill City Kitchen & Wine to open live-fire pizza, wine bar this summer at Judson Mill

Mill City Kitchen will make gourmet sandwiches, salads and live-fire pizza at its wine bar coming this summer at Judson Mill.

Although still awaiting Greenville County permitting approval, the 5,000-square-foot eatery at 701 Easley Bridge Road will host 70 people in its pizza, small plate and wine diner, with standing room for additional guests in the surrounding foyer area.

After working together for nearly 25 years in Atlanta, John Shepherd and Jason Donnelly decided to bring their chef's expertise to a budding Greenville market.

Live fire pizza is the attraction, yet the new establishment will offer much more.

"It's not really a pizza place. That's why we changed the name," said Donnelly, of what was initially named Mill City Pizza. "We decided to open at Judson due to the 600 residents available to live in a vibrant area on the west side of town, BlocHaven, Magnetic South, office spaces and more.

We have so much to showcase with our culinary background."

Pizzas, sandwiches and salads coming from Mill City Kitchen

On a recent trip to Italy, Shepherd and Donnelly experienced the cuisines from Milan to Naples, yet walked away knowing they didn't want to replicate any of its authenticity but to create their own.

According to Shepherd, Mill City Kitchen's pizza will offer a variety ranging from traditional American to Italian, Asian, and even Brazilian on their 14-or-16-inch pies. The chefs intend to import oil from a vendor in Tuscany.

"We don't want to be locked into a menu," Shepherd said. "We will have capacity for Honduran–style foods, as the grill has a space for traditional Brazilian food prep with skewers. That allows us to offer a constant fresh new menu."

Small plates, sandwiches and salads will also be on a rotating option. Mill City Kitchen will feature no fryer, so don't expect to see any fried food on the menu beyond a garnish or topping.

"We're both chefs at heart, so we're going to be creative," said Donnelly. "We'll also have a 12-by-16-foot pizza dough room with a window for customers to watch us make fresh mozzarella."

Mill City Wine Bar includes food and beverages from around the world.

Although located next to a brewery, Mill City Kitchen's wine bar selection will come from nationally and internationally vineyards, with whites and reds available per bottle or glass.

With 14 seats at the bar and an oval-flatbread and small plate wine menu with a different aesthetic than the pizza space, Mill City Wine aims to be intimate and complimentary to the different beverages imported.

Family connections within the wine industry, international travel and personal experiences at Martha's Vinyard in Massachusetts give both Shepherd and Donnelly a diversity in bringing in wines for their upcoming Greenville restaurant.

"Our wine menu will allow us to have more fun in the kitchen," said Donnelly. "We have to be more than a pizza place, so we're excited about having an exceptional wine selection, as well."

– A.J. Jackson covers the food & dining scene, along with arts, entertainment and downtown culture for The Greenville News. Contact him by email at ajackson@gannett.com, and follow him on X (formally Twitter) @ajhappened.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Mill City Kitchen and wine bar opening this summer at Judson Mill