When Josh Goodman took over ownership of Doc’s Dry Dock at the start of May, the last thing he thought of doing was making any changes to the popular Pewaukee bar and pizzeria.
Apart from purchasing some new food service equipment, Goodman retained the restaurant’s relaxed atmosphere and revered pizza to appease loyal customers.
Goodman said, “There would have been an uproar (from customers),” had he changed the pizza recipe, which entails loading pizzas with toppings before cooking them in a brick oven.
“(Doc’s Dry Dock) has its niche, and people know what to expect when they come there and I just wanted to keep it the same,” said Goodman, president and owner of the restaurant and a full-time executive account manager at Milwaukee-based Direct Supply.
After years of dreaming of buying a business, Goodman, a native of Pewaukee, seized the right opportunity in February and purchased the local hotspot, which sits on Pewaukee Lake.
Along with retaining the restaurant’s knotty wood look and beloved menu, Goodman also kept the employees and today has a staff of 10 part-timers.
Goodman said lessons he has learned from his experience at Direct Supply are helping him run Doc’s and Direct Supply’s supportive and flexible culture have helped enable him to own his own business.
“None of this would be possible without what I learned from the unique culture and awesome leadership at Direct Supply,” he said. “Many of the unique cultural aspects of Direct Suppy will be entrenched at Doc’s.”
Doc’s Dry Dock is located at N38 W27091 Parkside Road in Pewaukee.
