Fan Favorite Pizzeria with Taco Pizzas Is Coming to Phoenix

A popular Midwestern pizza restaurant is coming to metro Phoenix.Photo byJonas KakarotoonUnsplash

There is no shortage of Midwestern restaurants around greater Phoenix. There’s been a rather impressive migration of classic restaurants and culinary styles flocking to the area. With origins in Detroit in Cleveland, Milwaukee and Chicago, you can find everything from Detroit-style pizza to Chicago hot dogs. However, there aren’t many Dakota-based pizza restaurants in the area. Try to think of one and you’ll probably come up blank. All of that is about to change as a classic pizza and ice cream restaurant made famous by its array of taco pizzas, has announced it is making the move to Arizona, with one location set for metro Phoenix. 

Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream is the kind of place you go for a post t-ball game celebration, or when you want to put a smile on the faces of both kids and adults. It’s hard not to like a pizza, followed by ice cream. 

The classic restaurant, which first opened back in the 1970s in North Dakota, has since expanded throughout the region to include Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa. Surprisingly, there are also a number of restaurants scattered throughout Cairo, Egypt. While it is slightly ironic that you could have visited Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream while on a trip to see the Great Pyramids before the brand came to Arizona, that will soon be rectified. 

The pizza and ice cream restaurant chain has announced it is coming to both Phoenix and Tucson. An exact address has not yet been settled on as the brand is currently negotiating a franchise development deal for metro Phoenix. Once the ink settles on that agreement the brand will begin to scout possible locations. Of course, with all the major chain restaurants that have filed for bankruptcy and closed up shop this year, Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream shouldn’t have any problem finding available space. 

There are plenty of appetizers on the menu, ranging from garlic toast to chicken wings (with sauces including hot buffalo, sweet chili, BBQ classic, garlic parm, Mike’s Hot Honey, and teriyaki to name a few). However, the specialty pizzas include BLT (hickory smoked and Canadian bacon with cheese, then topped with lettuce and tomato), Hawaiian, BBQ, and Meatworks (pepperoni, sausage, salami, Canadian bacon, beef, and bacon pieces). Mexican pizzas include Taco Joe (refried bean sauce, taco seasoned beef, tomatoes, tortilla chips), and Nacho Joe (nacho cheese, taco seasoned beef, sausage, tomato, and tortilla chips).

Of course, don’t forget you can follow all of these goodies up with some classic ice cream.