Dry River Company

We stopped in for a couple quick appetizers before the movie. The food was really good and tasty. The service was very friendly as well. We got the garlic bread with mozzarella cheese and bruschetta.

Both dishes had a really good flavor to them and we will absolutely go back and try the pizza next time.

Having eaten at Dry River Pizza Company three times now, I figured that the third time was the charm for writing a review. The first time I went here, I did so because I realized that I had not had a wood-fired pizza for a while and wanted to have one in Tucson. When I discovered Dry River, I realized that it was right near the Century Gateway 12 Theatre on Kolb, a theatre I regularly attend. So, it was easy to find, North on Kolb, on the right, just after the theatre, and before Wal-Mart and Speedway.

As I picked this place specifically for the pizza, that is what I always have. Furthermore, it has several beers, including local ones, on draught. So, for both pizza and beer, it scores on both. The first time I was there, I asked about a local beer, and the pretty, blonde bartender offered me a sample, and after tasting it, I ordered a glass with dinner. It is quite nice that Dry River has good beers on draught to go with its pizza and other Italian food.

The pizza here is wood-fired and thin, Neapolitan style. The wood fire gives the pizzas both flavour and a good texture to the crust. We have had several varieties here and enjoyed them all. I happen to like the Italian with sopressata and red chili flakes, but it is rather spicy and may not be to everyone's taste.

Tonight, we had a Traditional Pizza with tomato sauce, pepperoni, sausage, banana peppers and mozzarella; and a Prosciutto Pizza with tomato sauce, mozzarella, Parmesan, prosciutto and portabella mushrooms. Both were tasty with good crusts due to the wood-fired oven. The Traditional had plenty of pepperoni and sausage, not skimpy as at some places, and the Prosciutto was heaped with prosciutto. I liked that and felt that we got our money's worth. Along with the meal, I had a Dragoon IPA on draught. Again, draught is nice.

The set-up is simple. There are menus right at the front as one walks in. Pizzas and drinks are chosen, and, then, an order is placed at the counter. After that, and payment, of course, one just chooses a table and sits, and the food is brought out. Drinks are given right at the counter. The above-mentioned bartender has been our server each time we have been there, and she has promptly brought out the plates, napkins and flatware, and, then, the pizza when it was ready. She, also, made sure that we had a box to take our leftovers home. There is a tip jar on the counter, so be sure to leave a tip for the bartender and other servers.

Dry River Pizza Company is our local place to go to for wood-fired pizza. The crust is good, and the ingredients are flavourful. The pizzas are priced reasonably, too, ranging from about $9.00 to $13.00. Then, there is beer on draught. Dry River knows pizza, and it does pizza well.

We ordered the margarita pizza and barely had flavor. The crust was crispy but the rest was saggy, not sure if they put too much sauce or didn't cooked it long enough. The garlic bread was very good. They have happy hour from 3-6

Homemade pasta... Yum! It's really hard to find that in Tucson so I always get the pasta dishes here even the pizzas are good too.
The chicken Parmesan comes with a BIG piece of chicken. The fettuccine Alfredo is super creamy. It comes with grilled chicken.
We visited last weekend after a 2 year absence (Not Dry River's fault. We had a change of heart found another favorite. Now we're returning to this old flame). Food is still very good and surprisingly, prices haven't changed much while other Tucosn restaurants are jacking them for close to 20%. A pint of local beer is $4.60 and house red wine is $6 which are very reasonable. We're definitely going back for more for old time sake.

Let me start by saying the food was excellent, but with there being only one cook and a trainee in the kitchen it was quite clear who the only star was in this dive of a bar/restaurant.

This place is exactly that, a dive. Dusty, dreary, and just dying for some life to be put back into it or put out of its misery. I honestly cannot remember the last time i have ever been to a restaurant where i had to order at the front and pay in advance (tip jar and tip on the receipt), then sat down. When i ordered i very clearly stated the menu items i wanted and the bartender/order taker confirmed each item. However after my table's drinks, appetizer, and first entree arrived, nothing else came. I checked with the waitress and she said there was nothing else in the ticket window. So i had to re-order the missing entree and wait an excruciating amount of time while the rest of my table's party ate.

The iced tea tasted kind of old and swampy. My partner's Dr. Pepper was flat. A breastfeeding mother nearby was being served alcohol. Everything about the place except the food was lacking/awful and great food alone doesn't make a great restaurant.

Looks like a nice pizza joint on the outside and bar on the inside. Don't let any of that stop you from coming in. Fantastic wood fired pizza at a reasonable price. Good drinks. I frequent this place....frequently. The only reason I'm not giving them 5 stars is that they never change their menu. Their happy hour menu has been the same for probably 5 years now. I like variety in a place and I've had everything they make...twice. Switch some stuff up.

Oh, and when you're done filling up with pizza and drinks just walk across the parking lot and watch a cheap movie.

I ate here with a Meetup group two days ago. I had the antipasto platter appetizer, which comes with several cheeses, toast, two kinds of sliced meat, and olives and other marinated vegetables. It's filling enough for a dinner. I paid $15.58 including tax and tip. All in all, a satisfying if unexceptional experience.

This is our third time here and we were pleasantly greeted with smells of a real fire burning oven. We had the Pepperoni, Margarita, and Alfredo pizzas. The Margarita was my favorite! The Alfredo could have used a little salt, but nothing major. The crust was delicious, light, and perfectly crispy where it should be. We also shared the strawberry, blood orange, and vanilla Italian Sodas. We all loved them. Our favorite was the vanilla. They use real whipped cream on their drinks, and not the disgusting and fake dehydrogenated oil junk that goes by the familiar name Cool Whip, yuck!!! Plus, my picky eater had plenty of choices at this restaurant.

We sat in the upstairs balcony and played chess with the kids while we ate. It was a blast, and a must do family stop. The staff is friendly and accommodating. They are laid back and unpretentious. Definitely a wonderful casual dinner place to add to your list of favorites.

This place is a bit of an anomaly. I read the previous reviews, and many of them said the place was decent but the food was bland. I looked at the photos and thought, "This looks delicious! How could it possibly be bad?"

Well the fact of the matter is both the reviews and the pics create a fairly accurate picture (though I do think 4 stars is a bit too generous for an average).

The food COULD be really good here. The methods are right. The ingredients are right. But the quality of ingredients is their big downfall. The tomatoes are supposedly Willcox tomatoes, and they taste like water. I have had Willcox tomatoes in Willcox, and I will tell you that the tomatoes grown there have plenty of flavor. So that indicates to me that either they are being stored improperly (ie refrigeration, which kills tomato flavor), or these tomatoes are far more generic. The mozarella is not salted enough. The pesto we had on our bruschetta barely tasted of anything rather than fresh basil.

The one item that tasted really good to me is the one item I KNOW they make in house: the crust. That was excellent. It is thinner than NY style, and its actually Italian style to be fair. Lots of people around here are apparently unfamiliar, I can tell by the reviews that knock it. But for what it is and what its supposed to be, its quite good.

The one exceptional thing about this place is the pricing. 10 bucks for a pizza big enough for two. Bruschetta was 6 dollars, and big enough for two. My wife and I walked out paying just over $20 for dinner and drinks with an appetizer. I can't argue with that. Thing is, I would have gladly paid $30 for the flavors that would have matched how my food looked. And I don't think I'm alone in that.

Yes, the organization of the place is a little goofy, with no official table service, but frankly I would not care about that whatsoever if the photos of their food wrote a check that my taste buds could cash. All said and done, I would still return because of the pricing. But if management happens to be reading this, take it as advice that you could have more profit, more customers, and more rave reviews by investing a little more into the quality on the plate.

5 stars for the most unique and delicious thin-crust pizza!! The tomatillo pizza with tomatillo sauce, chicken, caramelized onions, and lots of cheese was so yummy, even my picky boyfriend enjoyed it! Nice beer selection. Only one complaint: the size of the place. Also, I don't know why we have to order and pay first, and then try scrambling to find a table. Not cool with my broken wrist, unfortunately. Food and beer was great though, so still recommend!