In July of 2023, we tried to determine who had Wichita Falls’ best pizza, and came to the conclusion Stone Oven, Progress Pizza, and Half Pint Taproom’s pizza were some of the best to be found.

Last fall, we amended that list to include Chicago Pizza Kitchens’ saucy single serve pizzas from their Sikes Senter mall location, but since then, we’ve had an out-of-body pizza experience that it requires an update to this list.

A Chicago-style deep dish pie from Luigi’s Italian Pizzeria.

The deep dish pie from Luigi’s, 3600 Sheppard Access, is as close as you can get to an authentic Chicago-style pizza in Wichita Falls.

The most particular pizza aficionados might point out an actual Chicago-style pizza has two crusts, one on the bottom and one on top, like a pie, whereas the Luigi’s Chicago-style has only the bottom crust. Regardless, the Chicago-style from Luigi’s is out of this world.

When we first tasted our pizza, we were blown away. It was delicious, with a fresh baked bread-like crust, plenty of sauce, ground beef, and green olives.

And filling. Wow.

A single slice of this pie could make you tap out.

Luigi’s pizza immediately vaulted into our top echelon of pizza experiences in Wichita Falls.

Take note: If you order a Chicago-style for dine-in at Luigi’s, it is recommended you call and order your pie a half hour to an hour ahead of time, because they take time to prepare and bake.

Another contender showed itself to my pizza addiction this past winter as well, and like Luigi’s pizza, it comes from an authentic-feel Italian restaurant — Mia’s Italian Bistro. It has a delicious sauce, and mom-and-pop pizzeria appeal that can’t be denied.

Considering the additions of Luigi’s and Mia’s, we think Chicago Pizza Kitchen is now bumped from our top five places to get pizza in Wichita Falls.

Consider this your Spring 2024 update. We’ve sampled pizza from more than a dozen places. Progress Pizza, Half Pint, and Stone Oven, all rank high on the pizza scale in Wichita Falls, and Luigi’s Italian Pizzeria and Mia’s Italian Bistro are our newest additions, both high on the list.

What’s your favorite pizza in Fallstown? Tell us in the comments.

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It’s late. Really late.

Your night of revelry with good friends went later than you expected, and instead of going home to bed like you should have, you’re still up, thinking about where to go next. Dinner was 7 hours ago, and as your stomach rumbles, you wonder Where can I get some late night grub in Wichita Falls?

After intensive field research, TheFUSE has assembled this list of late night food options in Wichita Falls. This list is by no means exhaustive, and you’re encouraged to leave your own suggestions in the comments.

Where to Get Late Night Food

Wichita Falls / Updated September 2024

Backporch DraftHouse

One location open ‘til midnight Friday and Saturday

Broad Street Billiards

One location serving basic bar food until 2 AM.

Buffalo Wild Wings

One location. Open ‘til 2 AM on Friday and Saturday, midnight the rest of the week.

Denny’s

One location. Open 24 hours.

Hawaiian Brothers

One location open ‘til midnight, seven days a week.

Ihop

One location. Open 24 hours.

Jack in the Box

One location open 24 hours. Second location open ‘til midnight.

Legends Roadhouse

One location. Serving food ‘til 1 AM or close.

P2 The Deuce

One location open ‘til 2 AM Fridays and Saturdays, midnight the rest of the week.

Progress Pizza

One location open ‘til 10 PM.

Raising Cane’s

One location open ‘til 1 AM Fridays and Saturdays, midnight the rest of the week.

Stone Oven Pizza

One location. Open ‘til midnight on weekends.

Taco Bell

4 locations open ‘til 1 AM or later, in some cases, drive-thru only

Wendy’s

One location open 24 hours, second location open ‘til 1 AM

Whataburger

4 locations. Open 24 hours, seven days/week.

There’s always a chance you can find a food truck open late, too, particularly downtown.

What other places should we have on this list? Where do you go for late night food in Wichita Falls? Tell us about it in the comments.

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TheFUSE has previously attempted to determine who serves the best pizza in Wichita Falls, with delicious results. We concluded Stone Oven Pizza, Progress Pizza, Half-Pint, and Chicago Pizza Kitchens were among the best.

Next, we turned our attention to burgers in an attempt to discern where is the best place to get a burger and fries in Fallstown? For clarity’s sake, it should be noted we focused on five specific mom & pop type burger joints. Although there are surely more bougie out-of-this-world full-service restaurant burgers to be had, we wanted to focus specifically on local places that specialize in burgers and fries.

So, we chose five different locations, and over the course of a week, we visited each for lunch and ordered the same four items at each place to make sure our experience would be apples-to-apples. Here are our thoughts:

Gene’s Tasty Burger

We lost Gene’s Tasty Burger for a period in 2023 when the location closed, but they soon re-opened under new management. We visited on a weekday, just as the lunch rush was getting underway. We found Gene’s to be located in a working class neighborhood, at 2310 Holliday Rd, and it appeared to be a popular lunch spot for law enforcement personnel.

We found the burgers at Gene’s salty and old-fashioned, just the way we like ‘em. The patties came in small (4 oz) and large sizes (6 oz) and they appeared to be hand-pattied from fresh beef, with great flavor.

The onion rings were standout crunchy, and the tots were, in one taste-tester’s opinion, the best she ever had. Gene’s french fries were soft and potato-ey shoe strings, and the portions were some of the most generous of the restaurants we visited. Gene’s offered free refills on soda.

The price point at Gene’s Tasty Burger for two burger combos with an extra side of onion rings was $30.86, and we would find nearly every place we visited (with one exception) in approximately the same price range.

Scott’s Drive-In

Scott’s Drive-In, at 4701 Old Jacksboro Highway, is a real old-fashioned drive in with cooks in paper hats and oldies blaring from the overhead speakers in the dining room. Outside, there are about a dozen drive in parking spots where you can order your food from a speaker and get it delivered by a car hop. The dining room is very small with limited seating, and the indoor ordering model has you order at the counter, then they sling your order ticket down a line on a clothespin to the cooks. You pay when you pick it up, and our total order seemed to be about 5-dollars cheaper than the other places we visited.

We found Scott’s fries to be a delicious crinkle cut style, and the tots were very good too. The burgers seemed to be on the smaller side, and our taste testers couldn’t agree on whether the patties were previously frozen or not.

If you decide to visit Scott’s, be aware they get very busy during lunch time. Also, if you need something sweet for dessert, one taste tester had a Cherry Malt that was absolutely to die for… we were still talking about it days later.

Ronnie’s Burgers

Ronnie’s Burgers, 1501 Midwestern Parkway, was the only location we visited with a strip mall location, and the overall ambience reflected a more corporate experience, with a large dining room and franchise-type look. The food, however, was great, and each of our taste testers took note of the excellent customer service.

We found the burgers at Ronnie’s to be good with big patties, and the fries were soft and potato-ey. The tots at Ronnie’s seemed to be lightly seasoned in a manner the other locations’ were not. Ronnie’s offered free soda refills at the counter, and the strawberry shake we ordered was thick and delicious.

When your order is ready for pickup at the counter, they call your number over a loudspeaker… have your airport ears at the ready, because they are not always easy to understand.

Willie’s Place

Willie’s Place was the most “downhome” of the burger joints we visited for this story, and it had character in spades. Located at 3135 10th Street, Willie’s is in a blue-collar neighborhood where we saw two (friendly) stray dogs running loose outside, mounted deer heads and old license plates on the walls, and a corrugated steel ceiling. There are no public restrooms that we saw at Willie’s, so each table has a bottle of hand sanitizer for pre and post-meal cleanup.

Our taste testers agreed Willie’s burgers were in the middle of the pack, but their shoestring fries were good, as were the tater tots, although they lacked seasoning. Willie’s offers only condiment packets; there are no ketchup or mustard bottles at the table. On the positive side, Willie’s offered a good selection of BBQ items, including ribs, brisket and hot links.

Pat’s Drive Inn

Pat’s Drive Inn is located right near downtown, at 400 Scott Avenue, and we visted right at the height of lunch rush. We arrived to find the parking lot packed and expected to have a hard time finding a seat, so we were surprised to find a booth just being cleared, and we were able to sit down without a wait.

Of particular note, Pat’s was the only burger joint we visited in which a server waited on you at your table, and ours was prompt and attentive.

The burgers at Pat’s, in our opinion, appeared to be made from a frozen patty and were somewhat average. The fries were, however, one taste tester’s favorite of the bunch — thin, shoestring fries that looked like they would be soft and potato-ey under most circumstances, but ours were well-done and crunchy. Very good.

The tater tots were crispy but otherwise run-of-the-mill, and the onion rings were about the same. We had one negative observation about Pat’s, but no explanation… the unpleasant taste of Wichita Falls’ tap water seemed to be particularly overpowering in the ice cubes at Pat’s, and it was the only place our taste testers did not ask for a soda refill.

In the long run, we found something to love about each place we tried, and we cannot name an overall winner. We agreed, though, that Gene’s had the best tater tots and onion rings, the best burgers were likely from Ronnie’s or Gene’s in our opinion, and Scott’s had the best malt (Cherry) we’ve ever had. Willie’s was the place to go if you want a real Texas dive burger experience, and Pat’s and Ronnie’s were neck-and-neck frontrunners in the customer service experience.

For those with particular dietary desires, nobody had a gluten-free bun and nobody had an alternative (black bean) burger. All five of these locations are a guilty pleasure for sure.

There are other places to get burgers and fries in Wichita Falls, of course, and we’d love to hear your favorites. Mom & Pop burger joints? Full-service restaurants? Sound off in the comments and tell us what you think.

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I’ve eaten quite a few pizzas in Wichita Falls thus far, and my top three have been Progress’ Detroit Style, served in an apropos brewery setting, Stone Oven Pizza, a genuine dive old school pizzeria, and Half Pint Taproom, a bar and eatery with classy brick and wood textures within.

Today, I have to declare a pizza from the mall food court is joining the ranks of incredible places to get a pizza in the Falls.

Chicago Pizza Kitchen in the Sikes Senter Mall serves an incredible pizza, Chicago-style, and that is this pizza lover’s home base — a deep-dish pan pizza. Their Chicago-style pizzas are quite literally a pie, filled with toppings, with a buttery, biscuit-like crust that’s crunchy around the top.

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Lovers of sauce will love a Chicago Pizza Kitchen Chicago-style, because they are loaded with sauce. Just bring your Tums, my heartburn cursed friends, because this pizza is great.

It’s a shopping mall experience. Seating is in the food court at Chicago Pizza Kitchen, and drink selections are limited to $3 bottled drinks, but the pizza alone is worth it. I’m gonna eat my leftovers right now.

Have you had Chicago Pizza Kitchen? Let us know in the comments.

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In the interest of science and the betterment of humanity, I have taken it upon myself to do a scientific study with flawless methodology in which I eat every pizza I see in Wichita Falls and decide which is best.

Flawless methodology aside, I can’t do it. There is so much good pizza in our town, I will not choose. You can’t make me. However, when I ask around, there are some names I’m hearing a lot.

My niece is a big fan of Firo, a franchise fast-casual pizza joint, where they make your pizza in front of you, assembly-line style, and I enjoyed it, but for me, the top three are: Half Pint Taproom, Progress Pizza, and Stone Oven Pizza. I have written about each of them before and what makes them great — the salty ricotta of a Half Pint pepperoni, the saucy-buttery goodness of a Progress Detroit-style, and the garlicky flavor of Stone Oven.

I checked for a few opinions on the Wichita Falls scene and this is what I heard back:

• Local singer/songwriter Clint Vines chose Progress, saying “Cheesus Christ is probably my favorite. Although I do enjoy Da Wolf as well.”

• Former Falls weatherman and local musician John Cameron said “Half Pint has a pistachio pesto pie that’s pretty fantastic. Honestly, I don’t eat locally made pizzas frequently, so I’m far from an authority.”

• Polly Pocket of It Hurts to Be Dead simply said “Love me some Stone Oven.”

• Officer Robert Ruff of the Wichita Falls Police Department said “Luigi’s Pizza because it reminds me of the pizza I grew up with back in New Jersey.” He added “They have the gigantic NYC slices.”

• Brent Maples, Wichita Falls comedian, said “Stone Oven is great! One of my favorite pizzas is the deep dish from Chicago Pizza Kitchen. Very good!” He added “Bricktown has damn good pizza too. I forget about them sometimes.”

• Hellen Bach lead vocalist Larissa Brown said pizza is her favorite food. “I love Half Pint, of course, but I used to drive to Lawton to eat at Firo's Pizza before we got one in Wichita Falls. Their ingredients are high quality with lots of options for toppings, crusts, and even salads if you're into that sort of thing. Plus, who doesn't like gelato for dessert? I love that place.”

I’m making particular note of Brent’s suggestions since I haven’t been to either Bricktown or Chicago Pizza Kitchen (update). Future dinners on the agenda. Who wants to go?

Now, let’s hear from you. The comments are open. Who has the best pizza in Wichita Falls?

Pizza Update 2: Two additional contenders have been added to the field.

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The last time I set out for Taco Darlin I ended up on the side of the road calling for a tow when my truck’s brakes went out, and I never made it, so tonight I decided to fix that situation.

Taco Darlin is at 4214 Kell W Blvd, Suite 109, near the Intersection of Highway 82 and McNeil. The atmosphere inside is a beach cabana/tropical island feel, there’s a full-service bar and an elevated loft area, too. It’s tastefully decorated with top notch finishes that I saw, and very clean.

My server was very helpful in deciding what to order and informed me the most popular choices were the DP Pulled Pork Cali and the DP Pulled Pork Oki. DP stands for Dr. Pepper and Taco Darlin’s pulled pork is roasted in it, low and slow. My server gave me a few minutes to peruse the menu, but I ended up ordering one of each.

In case the Dr. Pepper angle isn’t enough uniqueness for you, Taco Darlin’ throws another curve ball over the taco plate.

Fries.

Yes, like, french (freedom?) fries. On your taco. Stay with me.

I was pleasantly assaulted by the flavors in a way I didn’t expect. I have never been a huge fan of non-traditional versions of familiar foods — yeah, this is lasagna, but it’s made with eggplant and leftover roofing shingles — but Taco Darlin’s tacos are unconventional and yet, still a delicious taco in my opinion.

The Cali comes with their Dr. Pepper pulled pork, fries, black bean corn relish, lime sour cream, and sriracha mayo, and it is incredibly good. The Oki was my favorite. Dr. Pepper pulled pork, fries, kimchi bacon sauce, and cilantro.

The kimchi bacon sauce… Oh my. It is soooo good. I gorged myself on two tacos and had Dr. Pepper pulled pork juice running down my hand and wrist, and it occurred to me that I needed to bring someone along to teach me how to eat more neatly at Taco Darlin. My server reassured me that if you didn't make a mess, you didn’t really enjoy it. I guess I did.

I wasn’t done however. The last time, when I ended up getting towed to the shop instead of tacoed in my face, I wanted one of Taco Darlin’s handmade shakes and never got it. This time, there would be no escape…

My friends, that is a “Reba” handmade milkshake. Blended ice cream and red velvet cake with frosting, chocolate sauce, chocolate chips, whipped cream, and a slice of red velvet cake delicately perched atop a mason jar.

The only blip in my service at Taco Darlin was when the very young food runner brought my milkshake without a spoon or straw or napkins, but I was not about to let that stop me. I went after the cake with my fork until my apologetic server was able to bring me a spoon and straw.

I cannot tell you how good the shake was… It’s cake and ice cream, and it comes in a presentation that encourages you to, again, make a mess. And I did, and I’ve never been happier doing it.

In the end, two tacos, a Coke Zero, and a Reba handmade milkshake came to about $26 bucks plus tip and I was happy to pay it. I’ve been known to gravitate to a taco truck a lot, but when I want to class it up and actually get a taco at a place where you can go inside and sit down, Taco Darlin is my first choice right now. Highly recommended.

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All photos by the author, © FallstownFUSE.com

Although I first moved to Texas in 2000, I had never been to Wichita Falls until I arrived in April, and when I got here, one of the first questions I started asking was “Where’s the best pizza in the Falls?”

I got a number of answers, and I’ve been sacrificing for the sake of science by personally eating all of them to determine for myself who has Wichita Falls best pizza?

I work from home and don’t know many people in Wichita Falls yet, so I literally had nowhere to go and nobody to see on this particular evening, and I just felt like I needed to get out of the house. For no reason at all, I got a little dressed up and went to Half Pint Taproom to sample the pizza people had been telling me about.

I’ve already written about Progress Pizza’s excellent Detroit-style, and Stone Oven’s garlicky hand-tossed pizza, and both of them are strong contenders for best pizza in Wichita Falls. However, the crust on a Half Pint Taproom pizza is the closest to a classic pizzaria-style crust that I’ve tried yet. It’s crisp and a little crackery on the edge and thin and floppy in the middle, just like cousin Sal used to make down at the corner pizzaria.

Half Pint’s pizzas are made in a brick oven and they have an entire menu of specialty pizzas you can choose from, but I’m an easy customer on that front because I’m always ordering some variation of pepperoni, and Half Pint’s was great.

The red sauce was sufficiently zesty, and their pepperoni pizza comes with ricotta on it which I found a little bit salty in a great way — it added a little something that I didn’t expect to an already great pizza. My niece says Half Pint’s pizza is her favorite in the Falls.

The service was great at Half Pint — my server was training a new server, and with the bartender, I think three or four different Half Point employees touched my table while I was there. Very attentive.

Also, the price point is totally reasonable. My pizza and a couple of sodas came to $16. With great pizza, affordable prices and good service, it’s easy to see why Half Pint Taproom draws people from all walks of life.

All that said, I think my favorite thing about Half Pint Taproom’s pepperoni pizza is how good the leftovers are with an icy soda at 10 PM while you watch Netflix.

I’m gonna make a point to go back and catch a live show in the Restoration Hall next time, but for now, I can’t recommend their pizza highly enough.

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I did not secretly conspire with the staff at Highlander Public House to have them prepare a perfectly cooked tv commercial quality Shrimp Po’ Boy and then photograph it in their dining room with studio lighting.

I thought I should start with that disclaimer because look at it. You order it, it arrives smelling amazing, and it looks delicious in the natural light coming in the windows.

I should note, I ordered mine without tomatoes, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

Highlander Public House is on Scott and 8th and their website describes it as “A Texas pub. A delightful Celtic/Texas fusion.”

I chose to sit in the dining room on this day, and you can immediately see the Celtic/Texas fusion in the design and decor — the rich, chocolate-tone woodwork of an Irish Pub that pays homage in design to the exposed hand-hewn beams of a dining hall at a cattle ranch.

My server took my order, a nice young lady named Parker, and I thought it was both considerate and smart that she came by my table right before my order arrived to see if there was anything I anticipated needing (I asked for ketchup.)

And then my Shrimp Po’ Boy arrived. Just look at it.

Quality ingredients make all the difference, and the Shrimp Po’ Boy at HPH is not made with weak, franchise packaged shrimp. You can choose fried or blackened shrimp (I chose fried) and mine was plump and meaty; very tasty. The sandwich is served on a toasted bun with garlic aioli, pickles, lettuce, and tomatoes. My french fries were delicious and crispy, too.

You know how when you go to a place a bunch of times, you have to find your thing? I’d been to HPH a few times, and everything was always very good, but I hadn’t found my thing… until today, anyway. The Shrimp Po’ Boy at Highlander Public House.

I still want to check out the pub and the patio dining on a future visit. I know what I’ll be ordering.

UPDATE: Highlander Public House closed in August 2024.

All photos by the author, © FallstownFUSE.com

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As a new resident of Wichita Falls, I was thrilled when I discovered that a taco truck parks outside my building every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Before I moved here, I looked up Wichita Falls online and saw tons of photos taken at public events where a red food truck was prominently pictured. When I arrived, I discovered it was the El Norteno on Wheels taco truck, and it brings delicious tacos practically to my doorstep, every weekend. Talk about a sign.

El Norteno on Wheels parks on the street right in front of Park Central, at the intersection of Scott and 8th, every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, unless they have another event happening somewhere else.

The arrival of the truck not only brings great food, but a flood of nostalgia, too — the aroma of delicious convenience food mixed with the exhaust from a diesel generator brings to mind pleasant memories of trips to a county fair and festivals on squares, with people laughing and forgetting, if only for a few minutes, that obligations await.

I’ve had a number of meals from El Norteno on Wheels and have never been disappointed, although, I would caution anyone with a sensitive constitution to be careful with the jalapenos. I will say no more.

El Norteno on Wheels serves mainly tacos, burritos, tortas, quesadillas and nachos, with an impressive assortment of proteins to choose from, including Chorizo (my favorite), barbacoa, asada, chicharron, buche, beef cheek meat, tongue, and others.

The food is delicious and the experience is great. I definitely recommend it.

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When I first moved to Wichita Falls, I heard I had to try the red tacos at Casa Manana, so I did. I looked them up online and found a few news articles about Casa Manana, celebrating their 75th anniversary in 2022, a story about their 70th Anniversary in 2017 and another about their 65th Anniversary in 2012. I had heard that they opened in 1947, and I thought it would be neat to see the grand opening announcement in the newspaper, so I did a search of newspaper archives and found something interesting.

It’s an advertisement from the November 8th, 1943 edition of the Wichita Daily Times.

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I had a sweet-tooth this afternoon and went on a quest for something to satisfy it. Don’t tell my mom, because I’ve been acting as her support as she tries to cut back on her sugar intake (sorry, Mom).

I was surprised to discover only one listing for frozen yogurt in the falls, Yogurt Journey, 3808 Kemp Blvd, right across from Barwise Middle School.

Google maps navigation said 4.4 miles, so I hopped in the truck and headed out.

Yogurt Journey is a self-serve frozen yogurt shop with a business model and service platform nearly identical to other froyo shops I’ve been to, like Cherry Berry and Tutti Frutti.

Take a big cup, choose your frozen yogurt flavor(s) and fill your cup with however much you want, scoop in any of their dozens of toppings, weigh, pay, and eat.

I chose vanilla and chocolate twist, with crushed peanuts, chocolate sprinkles and caramel syrup. Delish.

The staff was friendly at Yogurt Journey and they told me that there was another frozen yogurt store in town once, but they went out of business, making Yogurt Journey the only frozen yogurt shop in Wichita Falls.

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Nothing fuels you up like a slice of the real deal — pizza made from fresh dough and cooked to a crispy, doughy state of perfection in a classic pizzeria — and Stone Oven Pizza fits the bill.

How many times have I eaten at Stone Oven? Judging by my camera roll, at least this many:

To be clear, I didn’t take a photo every time, so it’s definitely more than four. Also, in that last photo, there are two slices of pizza because they accidentally made one wrong, so they made a second one, and brought me both! Score.

I’ve previously written about Progress Pizza and how much I like their saucy Detroit-style, and Stone Oven is the other prime contender on my mind for Best Pizza in Wichita Falls. It’s a legit, authentic pizza with a strong hit of garlic, and nearly any topping you could want. Delicious, filling and available by the slice.

What do you think? Who do you think has the best pizza in the Falls? Let me know in the comments.

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New York style pizza is delicious and flat and foldable. Chicago style pizza is thick and hearty; the kind of pie you can eat with a fork. Detroit-style, however, is my personal current fascination.

I’m sorry, heartburn-cursed friends, but I love a saucy pizza, and as you can see from the photo, a Detroit-style from Progress Pizza is loaded with red sauce. It’s roughly 8 x 10 if I’m estimating correctly, and has a thick, cheesebread-like crust, buttery and crunchy around the edges, topped with a little sauce, your topping(s), and then more sauce on top.

The sauce itself has a sweetness to it that I found pleasantly surprising, and with the buttery crust, it results in a very rich pizza. I’ve personally been known to down an entire pizza on my own, but I was only able to eat four of the six slices of Progress’ Detroit-style on my first try.

A little snack for later, then…

There are plenty of other menu choices, too, including traditional round pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and more.

You can order online, or at the window inside Wichita Falls Brewing Company, and it’s not uncommon to see entire families come in for pizza. In my opinion, Progress Pizza has one of the best pizzas in the Falls.

Progress Pizza
701 Indiana Avenue

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For a hungry patron on their first visit to Wichita Falls’ Casa Manana, it would be easy to get overwhelmed with all the unique choices. I visited for the first time recently and I had to rely on Hadleigh, my knowledgeable server, to clue me in on the original offerings at this humble local favorite.

Casa Manana is known for their “red tacos,” so I had to order those, with rice and beans, and when Hadleigh offered to bring me chips and salsa, she upsold me on the small queso.

My first hint that it wouldn’t be another so-so dinner was when she brought the chips and queso. Casa Manana has the thickest tortilla chips I have ever eaten, and they are awesome. I’m told they make them from scratch, and they are absolutely unique. I’d describe them as something between a cracker and a corn chip.

I was busy relishing the tortilla chips and talking Hadleigh’s ear off when my red tacos came up, and they were equally unique. Again, as with the tortilla chips, the red taco shells are obviously made from scratch, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, a little like a chalupa.

As if the tacos weren’t unique enough, Hadleigh brought me a squeeze bottle of wine sauce. Apparently, people clamor for it, and I tried it, but it was a little bit like cocktail sauce for my taste. There was not much heat in the dishes I ordered, either, which was fine with me, but might come as a surprise to any diner expecting a more traditional Mexican dish.

Nevertheless, I went away from this modestly decorated restaurant stuffed, and impressed with the unique experience and tasty meal. The staff was friendly and attentive and polite. If you visit downtown Wichita Falls, you can’t skip a visit to Casa Manana, 609 8th Street.

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