Big John's Pizza first opened in Bondi in 1985 by it's founder John Ugurulyan. An Armenian/Greek born in Turkey, who migrated here in in the 60's with his mother and father. They first opened the Bondi store back in 1985, where John was just 22 years of age and already had a wealth of experience in making pizzas through his father's pizza shop. John had a passion for food and built a brand that is well known across Sydney. With almost 40 years of trade, Big John's is spread across three locations, two in Bondi and one in Sans Souci.

Big John's Italian seafood Restaurant in Sans Souci is the flagship store which introduced epic portions and incredible flavours which is now one of the many reasons  Big Johns is famous. Sans Souci hosts 200 seats, a 12-page menu, which includes our famous seafood platters, very tasty pizzas and steaks which are huge in size and value. The 'BIG' in Big John's comes from its portions and value, not the size of the man himself.

In the 90's and 2000's, the business peaked in popularity, recognising Big John's as one of Sydney's busiest restaurants, with lines out the door and wait times greater than 2 hours. Many who attend the restaurant today often speak of this as a means of both sharing how long they have been customers, but also reminiscing its former glory.

Fast forward to today, the business is still standing strong, withstanding many global and local economic challenges which is a testament to its brand but more importantly customer loyalty. (Thank you)

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In January 2024 its new owners, Terry Antoniou a Sydney born Greek/Australian with a huge passion for food & service along with Jessica Fleming an Italian/Australian with the same passions took over the reins after nearly 40 years with John, its founder.

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Terry, a seasoned professional with almost 30 years in business, opted for a sea change that really tapped into his passion, which prompted him to moving back into the food and services business.

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There is a lot of sentiment that comes with this purchase for Terry, that is, his late father Antony, who worked at Big John's as a pizza chef, brokered the idea about buying big John's. He had worked in the business for about 1 year and had claimed that it was the hardest he ever worked in his life. As an experienced business broker, Antony saw the opportunity in this and raised this as a great business venture that could be explored together.

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Inspired by his father’s enthusiasm and will to build another family business, Terry pursued the opportunity and was drawn to the idea of working with his father again with the addition of his young family.

 

 

As many know, working with family is not always easy, however all of them coming together, sees a culmination of great wisdom, experience, creativity and an burning passion to create something great for Big John’s and its customers.

 

 

Unfortunately, Antony passed away unexpectedly midway throughout the sales process. Undeterred, Terry continued to push through, especially now that it carried much more sentimental value. This story went from being a family business to a venture that would honour his father’s legacy and something that could be passed onto his children.

 

 

“I want to rebuild Big John's, reinvigorate the brand, bringing life back to this iconic institution. With some of my special touches I hope to make Big John’s an exciting establishment again. I want this to represent more than just big portions though, for me it’s about bringing people together as family and friends, but most importantly a place where you can come and feel like you’re at home”

 

 

“As a family run business, we want people to feel like they are a part of us! At home we come together and bring joy to our family through feasting, and want to do the same here, in our restaurant, with all of you. ”Please join us and lets break bread & pizza, together”