Punching In at Pizza Factory

Pizza Factory

214 W. Route 66

Williams, AZ 86046

After a long day, we did not want to go to a sit-down restaurant. We had driven from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon, and then back to our motel in Williams. When we were checking in at the Howard Johnson's, we enquired about a pizza place in the area. The woman at the desk mentioned Pizza Factory, saying that it is better than Pizza Hut. With that ringing endorsement, how could we not choose to try it?.

I was surprised to learn that Pizza Factory is a chain pizza place. I have never heard of them before. When I was writing this review I looked it up and they have 120 units in five western states. They started in 1979 in Oakhurst, California, and by 1985 they started franchising their concept across the west. One reason I may have never heard of this pizza place before was that they seem to open in out of the way places. Some of their restaurants are located in; Orofino ID, Lovelock NV, Medical Lake WA, and Weed CA. Not exactly big cities on this list.

The City of Williams definitely fits in on this list as well. After checking into the motel, we called Pizza Factory to order one of their pizzas to go. The very friendly voice on the other end took the order and told us it would be twenty minutes. We braved the 19 degrees cold and got to the pizza place fifteen minutes later. The pizza was all ready for us. There were about five other parties eating at the restaurant. This was your average pizza place, with a few video games in the corner, some TVs showing some sporting events, and a small salad bar off to the side. We were eager to get back to the motel and relax, so we grabbed some red pepper packets and Parmesan cheese and hunkered down for the night.

As you can see from the pictures above we went with a pretty basic pizza, Large Pepperoni and Sausage on half, then Olives and Pepperoni on the other side. Before biting into the pizza I noticed that they were very generous with the toppings here, especially the olives. Of course, I have never known a pizza place to go easy on the olives. It seems like they use a dump truck to pour them on top of pizzas. Anyways, this pizza was still hot after our five-minute drive back to the motel. The crust was pretty good here, nice chew and decent flavor. It did its job of holding the toppings, and staying firm. The cheese was okay, and the toppings were plentiful. A pretty solid pizza, and definitely better than Pizza Hut. 

Out of five route markers, (because the city of Williams was the last to have its section of Route 66 bypassed in 1984), five being best to zero being worst, Pizza Factory gets 2.5 route markers.

For more information about Pizza Factory, click here: https://williams.pizzafactory.com/

Cruising Down Route 66 to Twisters - CLOSED

Twisters 50's Soda Fountain

417 E. Route 66

Williams, AZ

The drive from Vegas to the Grand Canyon is a long one. It always looks so much shorter when you look at the distance on a map. Anyways, we made it to Williams at about 1pm on a Wednesday. On the way to this small town, which is at the start of the road to the Grand Canyon, we needed to stop and stretch our legs. It was also a good time to get something in our stomachs for the final hour that we had to drive before we reached the canyon.

Before leaving for our trip I had written Twisters 50's Soda Fountain down as a possible lunch location for us. Twisters is located right on Route 66, the main drag of this tiny tourist town. Twister's really has the roadside diner vibe down to an art. They have the old car stationed out front. There is a gift shop with souvenirs off to the back of the restaurant. The menu even features classic diner foods, some even named after famous 50's icons.

We are one of two parties of two at this time of the day here. It is also evident that this is not the peak of the tourist season around these parts. I am sure in the summer, or even a little later, during spring break this restaurant and town will be crawling with tourists. After checking out the menu, we made our selections and waited until the food hit the table.

Started off with the Chili Cheese Fries. Chili out of a can, average fries, but lots of cheese made these pretty average tasting. We did enjoy the serving size of this appetizer though.

For a lunch option, Katie selected the Fried Chicken Sandwich. This chicken sandwich was served on a sesame bun with all the fixings, red onion, tomato, lettuce, and pickles. Katie called this sandwich, "solid and good for a snowy day". She felt the produce used here was fresh.

I had worked up a pretty big appetite during our drive, so I had the Big Bopper Burger. This half-pound double patty cheeseburger was nothing spectacular. In fact, it was very average. Could have been frozen patties, which I would expect from this tiny place. This burger was served with the same fries used with the chili fries.

Twisters was what I expected it to be. It is a 50's diner run by a local family. The food is okay. It serves its purpose of feeding road-weary travelers and tourists that have just come back from the Grand Canyon. We did not have anything from their soda fountain, but the reviews for their ice cream are pretty good. They even serve a Brooklyn Egg Cream, which you do not see a lot of places. Service was fine here, but of course, we were the only ones in here at the time of our departure. Prices were pretty good for a sit-down restaurant. Burgers and sandwiches were $8.66, and most appetizers were $4.66. Yes, you read that right. All menu items ended in 66 cents, in honor of the route that they are situated on. Just another thing that makes this little diner unique.

Out of five railroad tracks, (because the city of Williams is the starting point for the once-daily round trip to the Grand Canyon on the Grand Canyon Railways), five being best to zero being worst, Twisters 50's Soda Fountain gets 2 railroad tracks.

For more information on Twisters 50's Soda Fountain, click here: http://www.route66place.com/Twisters_50_s_Soda_Fountain_s/32.htm