By JAN McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Myles’ Pizza Pub had a reputation for being heavy on toppings and long on lasting memories. So the promise of a long-distance Myles’ pizza delivery on Sunday led to a long line of former customers looking for a blast from the past from the pizza pub.
Many drove hours to get the pizza and garlic bread, and some brought large coolers to transport their treasures back home. But few could beat the devotion of Howard and Donna Copeland, 1985 alumni of Bowling Green State University, who named their son Myles after the hangout where they spent countless hours during their college years.
“That should tell you how often I ate there,” said Howard Copeland, who was a linebacker on the BGSU football team. Myles’ pizza was – and still is – substantial. “It filled me up.”
The Copelands, who now live in Maumee, had reserved two pepperoni and sausage pizzas and one order of bread to take home for a couple meals and lots of memories.
After nearly a 10-year absence from Bowling Green, Myles’ Pizza can still draw a crowd. And pleasing customers is still what brings a smile to the face of owner, Chip Myles.
Myles, who now operates a pizza pub in Greenville, South Carolina, frequently hears from BGSU alumni and BG townies who miss his pizza. So in November, he took a carload of frozen pizzas and breads to Cincinnati, where a group of alumni hungered for his recipes.
“We were overwhelmed,” Myles said Sunday afternoon as he set up his pizza pop up shop in the parking lot of the Montessori School in Bowling Green.
Social media posts about the special delivery to Cincinnati got people in the Bowling Green area talking – wanting their own slices of pizza pie.
“People up north began asking,” Myles said. “We knew the next trip would be to Bowling Green. It just had to be.”
But satisfying Myles’ fans up here required a bit more effort. A van was purchased to deliver the orders for more than 400 pizzas and 100 breads.
Other places “heavy with BGSU alum” are also getting signed up for personal delivery service, in places such as Charlotte, Columbus, and locations in Florida.
And of course, Myles Pizza Pub in South Carolina continues to ship to customers clamoring for classic menu items.
“We’re having fun,” said Chip Myles, who was joined on his long-distance pizza delivery by his wife Bridget, daughter Meredith, and granddaughter Wrigley. As he looked out at the long line of customers, it was good to be serving up crowd-pleasing pizza in the city he served for nearly 40 years.
In the line was Lu Ann Hunt, of Weston, whose son in Indiana placed an order for a couple pizzas with meat toppings. Not to be left hungry, Hunt put in an order for herself for a chicken lover’s pizza, with the spicy sauce she loves.
Standing behind her was Jason Albanese, who was patiently waiting for his order of seven pepperoni pizzas and two breads. Myles’, he said, stands out from most other pizza shops.
“The toppings. He loads them up. He doesn’t skimp on them.”
Next in line was Cody Mescher, a 2000 BGSU alumnus, who traveled from Coldwater, to get a taste from the past. He was picking up four pepperoni pizzas for himself, plus other orders for fellow alums.
Myles Pizza Pub was the go-to place to take his family when they came up to campus for visits. The pizza there stood out for being so substantial. “The amount of toppings and the amount of cheese” was remarkable.
Further back in the line that stretched across the parking lot was Duane Kern, who got his first taste of Myles’ Pizza when he was 12 years old.
“Oh man, the crust, a lot of cheese, the sauce – it was awesome,” he recalled.
Kern, who now lives in Maumee, was a student at Elmwood where he played on the football team. Myles’ was the place to go with his buddies after football games and practices.
“We lived in there on the weekends,” Kern said.
Years later, the tradition continued on Sunday as he picked up two pepperoni pizzas and a garlic bread. “You gotta have one of those,” he said.
Kern said he and his wife are planning a trip this fall down to the Myles’ shop in Greenville, South Carolina.
They aren’t alone in making the 598-mile trek down south for their favorite pizza pie.
Jerry and Karen Elder, who live in Wauseon, said they have made the 10-hour trip five times in the last decade. Sometimes they add in other destinations along the way, but this last December the trip was purely for the pizza, Karen Elder said.
Jerry Elder worked as a delivery person for Myles’ Pizza from 1985 to 1991.
“I delivered to get through school,” he said. Of course, they dined there frequently as well. “We ate there quite a lot during college.”
Since then, the couple has had hankerings for the pizza and the garlic cheese bread.
“The food of the gods,” Jerry Elder said.
