In March 2004, Matt Danford opened Blue Mountain Pizza in downtown Weaverville, and as many businesses do, the restaurant closed on Thanksgiving Day.
That was the last Thanksgiving Day that the restaurant would be closed.
“It didn’t feel right to me. We’re in the business of feeding people, and I couldn’t reconcile with myself that we were closed when there were people who needed to eat,” Danford said.
The following year, in 2005, Blue Mountain Pizza hosted its first free community dinner, inviting guests to gather in the dining room on Thanksgiving Day. He said more than 100 meals were served.
Blue Mountain Pizza’s free community dinners began when owner Matt Danford realized that it “didn’t feel right” for the Weaverville restaurant to be closed on Thanksgiving Day.
The tradition continues, with more than 10,000 meals total reported served over the past 20 years.
Danford said the restaurant saw an increase in diners last fall, as the community was in the early stages of recovery from Tropical Storm Helene, which hit Western North Carolina on Sept. 27, 2024. More than 1,000 meals were served on Thanksgiving Day.
This year, Danford said the need may be heightened by issues such as ongoing food insecurity, cost inflation and changes with federal food assistance programs, resulting in strains on individuals’ and families’ budgets this holiday season.
However, community dinner guests attend for many reasons.
“It’s not just people who are in need, it’s people who are alone. We have a lot of senior citizens, exchange students, people who live here who don’t know anybody,” Danford said. “We have a lot of people who don’t have anywhere else to go and don’t want to be alone on Thanksgiving.”
Danford said he’s witnessed people who met over Thanksgiving dinner return to dine together the following year.
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Blue Mountain Pizza’s free Thanksgiving Day feast
The 20th annual free community Thanksgiving dinner will be from Noon-3 p.m. at 55 N. Main St. in Weaverville. Walk-ins only.
The classic holiday menu features turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls and desserts.
Danford said it was a “tremendous undertaking” that his business partner, Stephen Hartsell, who is also the restaurant’s general manager, has overseen for nearly four years.
“Stephen has embraced it and is wonderful with it,” Danford said.
Blue Mountain Pizza began serving free dinners to the community on Thanksgiving Day in 2005. The tradition continues 20 years later.
Danford also attributed the community, including the restaurant’s staff, for making the outreach initiative possible. Blue Mountain Pizza staff aren’t required to work, but volunteer their time for the holiday. They are joined by their families, former employees, and other local families, including children, who want to lend a hand.
“We named it a ‘free community Thanksgiving dinner’ when we started because we wanted to make everyone feel welcomed, but it has really turned into a community effort,” Danford said.
Most meals are served at the restaurant or picked up. However, a select number of pre-requested meals are delivered to the homes of those with limited mobility, such as senior citizens, often by off-duty police and fire department personnel.
Food donations have allowed them to feed more people.
For 2025, Danford estimated 40 turkeys will be prepared, in addition to 20 25-pound hams, dozens of pies, 50-60 pounds of mashed potatoes, dressing and green beans.
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“This is all done by a handful of people. This is all done in our little kitchen, and we have little pizza ovens, so it’s a lot,” Danford said.
Danford said that if the need continues to increase and more people attend, he foresees that another venue will be needed to accommodate guests.
Giving with a heart of gratitude
Monetary donations made directly to the restaurant have helped offset its costs.
“We have some people come in every year with their children, and the children give us a quarter each in our donation jar because their parents want to make sure, they know it’s not free,” Danford said.
Danford said it’s an emotional event as the community expresses gratitude.
“It’s one of the things I’m most proud of that we do,” Danford said.
In 2024, following Tropical Storm Helene, Blue Mountain Pizza fed more than 1,000 guests on Thanksgiving Day.
Blue Mountain Pizza’s charitable efforts extend throughout the year, including its monthly Third Thursday fundraiser, which benefits different area nonprofits. In November, funds were raised for Equal Plates Projects, which provides nourishing, chef-made meals made with fresh ingredients from local farms to WNC neighbors facing food access barriers.
In 2024, Danford said nearly $600,000 total was raised and donated to featured local nonprofits.
“We do it because it’s the right thing to do, but we also do it because it’s the best way to get the word out about who we are,” Danford said. “This should be normal. This should be every day.”
Blue Mountain Pizza’s free community Thanksgiving dinner
Where: 55 N. Main St. in Weaverville.
When: Noon-3 p.m.
Info: For more, visit bluemountainpizza.com/thanksgiving.
Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Tips, comments, questions? Email tkennell@citizentimes.com or follow @PrincessOfPage on Instagram. Sign up for AVL Bites and Brews, our weekly food and drink newsletter here.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Free Thanksgiving dinner at Blue Mountain Pizza returns for 20th year
