Pizza D’Action has been a smoking-hot presence on Little Rock’s bar scene for nearly 50 years. It’s also notable as one of the few remaining businesses in the city that allows its patrons to smoke openly.
That freedom has made the 21-and-up nightspot a favorite among service-industry workers, who need a place to wind down after their restaurants close late in the evening. And according to manager Erin Hurley, it helps foster a wild and crazy time for its working-class regulars seven nights a week.
“We’ve kind of gone back and forth about whether we want to maintain it being a smoking bar, and I personally have never smoked,” said Hurley. “But from a business standpoint, you’ve got a built-in crowd of people who barely have any other place to smoke.
“Every night I work it’s a different show, and it’s very colorful,” he added. “People get rowdy, but not violent.”
The Heights-based fixture also has a kitchen, of course, which specializes in making pizzas, sandwiches and appetizers. Yet Hurley said his clientele are more likely to load up their bar tab with drinks and have a slice of pizza on the side, meaning that the bar subsidizes the kitchen as “the food is an afterthought.”
Hurley notes that Pizza D’Action is also “very friendly” with the LGBTQ community, and hosted drag brunches before Covid-19 hit. Now that the pandemic has largely passed, Hurley hopes to restart the outrageous events. He also sees business brightening after suffering for two years under Covid, as well as weathering a recent tragedy in which a doorman was shot dead.
“That incident was so weird because this is a very neighborhood-friendly spot and nobody knew the shooter,“ recalled Hurley. “But we’ve never had a problem with violence before or since.”
Pizza D’Action is open until midnight on Sundays; until 2 a.m. Mondays through Thursdays; and until 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Hurley noted that the long evening hours are the biggest challenge for him.
“It’s 3 or 4 a.m. by the time we’re done cleaning, so it’s very hard to get quality time with your kids or grandkids,” he said. “We’re also like just about every other business in the service industry, having to regain traction with the community after Covid cost a lot of business.”
On the other hand, Florida native Hurley finds his greatest reward in the autonomy he maintains with the nightspot’s owner. After a lengthy previous career working at the late, great Juanita’s with live bands that changed on a daily basis, he also values the predictable aspects of funning a joint.
“I’m my own boss, lets me do what I want for the most part to make it work,” said Hurley. “When you’re in music, it’s a different band or manager you’re asked to please in endless different ways on a daily basis. Here, you know what you’re going to get every day, and there’s something a little soothing about that.
“I’m glad I’m not just polishing spoons. We could be throwing darts right now,” he said with a smile. “I’m lucky.”
Pizza D’Action is located at 2919 W. Markham St., Little Rock. Call (501) 666-5403.
