Longtime favorite regional pizza chain makes a comeback in Turlock. Here’s what it offers
Like an old friend coming back to town, a longtime favorite area pizza chain has returned to Turlock.
Oakhurst-based regional restaurant chain Pizza Factory has opened a new Stanislaus County location, some three years after its previous site in the city closed during the pandemic. The new location opened late last month in Countryside Plaza just off the Fulkerth Road exit in Turlock.
The new Pizza Factory, on the west side of Countryside Drive next door to FoodMaxx and across from the Texas Roadhouse, features all of the chain’s favorite hand-tossed pizzas and other offerings in a newly renovated space.
Husband-and-wife owners Luis and Sandy Marquez have a history with the chain, which was founded in the late 1970s in the Madera County foothills town near Yosemite National Park. Sandy worked at the Pizza Factory in the small rural eastern Stanislaus County town of La Grange all through high school and for several years after.
So when the couple were deciding what kind of business to open, they didn’t have to look far outside their own experiences.
“We both work day jobs (him in network administration and her in the medical field) and wanted to go into business together. We wanted to do something we’d like, so we landed on pizza,” Luis said. “When we landed on pizza, the choice for us was clear.”
The pair live in Merced, but chose to open in Turlock because Merced already had a site. Pizza Factory has locations in Hughson, Denair and Gustine and has been a pizza presence in the Central Valley since the early 1980s. The franchise chain now has about 100 locations, mostly in smaller cities and municipalities across California with additional sites in Washington, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona and Texas.
The 2,600-square-foot Turlock space, formerly a thrift store, had to be fully renovated and now features an open kitchen (where you can see the pizzas being hand tossed), dining room and the popular buffet and salad bar area. The location offers in-house delivery or though third-party apps including DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats.
The lunch buffet remains one of Pizza Factory’s biggest draws, offering all-you-can-eat pizza, salad and a drink for $13.50 weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The restaurant also is running a family dinner special featuring any extra-large specialty pizza, an order of bread sticks, 10 chicken wings and drinks for $42.95.
Besides its array of specialty and custom pizzas ($7.95 to $10.95 for a mini individual pie, up to $22.45 to $29.95 for an extra-large pie) , the restaurant also serves calzones, pastas, sandwiches, salads, wings and all the cheesy, bready appetizers you’d expect. It also has eight taps of draft beer to wash that all down.
Luis said what also helps Pizza Factory stand out are fresh ingredients, including dough made and block cheese shredded on site daily. The Marquezes said one of the other ways the company distinguishes itself is with community support.
“We liked what the stores do outside of just pizza,” he said. “They’re very involved in the community and youth sports.”
Once they’re through the opening phase and more established, the Marquezes plan to start sponsoring teams and running fundraisers at the restaurant and offering other rewards to local schools. They’ve even left a back hallway wall empty for photos of teams and community groups.
The new owners hope to live up to the standard set by Turlock’s previous Pizza Factory, which was open for about a decade across from California State University, Stanislaus, on Monte Vista Avenue.
The new restaurant already has brought back warm feelings to some Turlock residents who missed the old Pizza Factory and were happy for its return.
“It’s very nostalgic,” said Turlock resident Luisa Elisaia, who came to the restaurant for lunch with a friend. “I used to live by the (former) one in Turlock and would go there after school.”
Pizza Factory, at 1865 Countryside Drive in Turlock, is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, call 209-620-8330 or visit www.pizzafactory.com/turlock.
