Earlier this month the Maricopa Monitor held a local online contest called “Creme de la Copa” which gave Maricopa residents a chance to vote for their favorite local businesses. Barro‘s Pizza was a top contender for the “Best Pizza” category alongside eight other well known pizzerias.

After two weeks of voting, Barro‘s Pizza was awarded “Best Pizza” in the Maricopa area. Joey Donovan, Store Manager of Barro‘s in Maricopa was thrilled with the outcome stating, “We‘ve been doing this for so long here; we know what we‘re doing here. We treat our customer‘s right, and we greatly appreciate the feedback we got and that we won.”

Barro‘s Pizza first arrived to the Maricopa area in 2006 and has formed a close relationship with the local community. The pizza is obviously the largest attraction for Barro‘s; however their wings are almost as popular as the pizza. Donovan mentions that their wings have been said to be “the best in town just because they‘re the biggest and juiciest”.

Donovan commented on the small-town atmosphere of Maricopa stating, “the people are very friendly down here.” Barro‘s Pizza has been noticed for its authentic cuisine, great service and friendly atmosphere for many years and look forward to what the future has in store.

To read more information please visit:
Here!

Barro‘s Pizza handpicked four employees for the second year in a row to send to the International Pizza Expo and World Pizza Games to compete in six competitive categories. Held in Las Vegas on March 19th - 21st, Barro‘s came prepared to go head to head with some of the world‘s best pizza chefs.

Dean Starbuck, Zach Tiner and Mike Barro Jr. represented Barro‘s Pizza in different competitive events including freestyle acrobatics, fastest dough pound, pizza triathlon, box folding, most creative pizza recipe and traditional pizza recipe categories.

Barro‘s Pizza Deer Valley General Manager, Tim Hoffman, competed in the “Non-Traditional” pizza category, which required him to invent a creative, visually appealing and tasty pizza. Tim created a Cannoli Pizza which he inventively named “Holy Cannoli”. The “Holy Cannoli” won him first place in the Southwest region. Spectators sampled his non-traditional pizza and were pleasantly taken aback by his originality and skill. One spectator who was lucky enough to sample Tim‘s creative and decadent pizza stated, “That was the best pizza I have had here all week.” Fortunately it didn‘t stop there; Tim then advanced to the finals and competed for the title of “World‘s Best Pizza Maker” in the “Non-Traditional” pizza category. After recreating his “Holy Cannoli” pizza on stage in front of a large audience, he was awarded second place in the WORLD.

This year the Barro‘s team did a great job working together and showing the world their exceptional pizza making skills. At the end of the night, Tim Hoffman proudly stated, “Needles to say it is always a blast getting to represent the company and be amongst the best in the world. I can‘t wait until next year.”

Barro‘s Pizza is making its move in South Tempe. The increasing number of loyal customers has prompted our decision to move our South Tempe location on Warner & Rural a mile down the street to Warner & Kyrene. The phone number and employees will all stay the same, but the location will be bigger and better for your convenience.

Since the opening of Barro‘s Pizza in Tempe, the locals have opened their arms and hearts by supporting us continuously. Manager of the Tempe location, Steve Cochell, will be maintaining Barro‘s loyalty and services to all the customers who follow us on this move.

The new location will open to the public on February 20, 2013. Join us at 8830 S. Kyrene Rd. #106 Tempe, 85284 for lunch or dinner and help us celebrate.

For more information on our new Tempe location or to place an order please call 480-831-7676.

Tim Hoffman, the manager at the Deer Valley Barro‘s location took part in the “6 Alarm Firehouse Cookoff Showdown” on Saturday, February 2nd. The cook-off challenge took place at the Sub-Zero Wolf Showroom in Scottsdale which benefited the 100 Club of Arizona. Tim was teamed up with Rodney and Josh, two firefighters from the Daisy Mountain Fire Department. The challenge required each team to create a mouth watering fiery dish, and without a doubt Tim, Rodney and Josh created a dish that knocked the judge‘s socks off.

Our Barro‘s team kicked off the challenge with their infamous Chicken Hot Wing Pizza, topped with a handful of bacon and jalapenos. It doesn‘t stop there, the pizza was then garnished with blue cheese crumbles, celery and yellow cherry tomatoes, with finishing touches of a ranch drizzle and a spot of fire sauce on the plate. Afterwards, manager Tim Hoffman stated, “We had an amazing time. I got to train the guys on how to make a Barro‘s Pizza and we all had a blast doing it.”

Even though we didn‘t win the challenge, we won the hearts of many attendees who got to try our Chicken Hot Wing pizza for the first time. We were also able to help spread awareness of the 100 Club of Arizona; a nonprofit organization who provides financial assistance to families that have suffered from the injury or death of public safety officers and firefighters. The Barro‘s team worked hard and did tremendously. We asked Tim after the event what his final thoughts were and he stated, “Now I‘m warmed up for the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas!!”

Fox 10 covered the event and interviewed the sizzling firemen to hear what they had to say about the cause. For more information and insights on the event watch the Fox 10 segment online.
http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/20942714/2013/02/02/win-a-date-with-a-firefighter-at-charity-firehouse-cookoff

For over thirty years, Barro‘s Pizza has served our customers nothing but the best. Our secret recipes and traditional cooking have won the hearts of tens of thousands of loyal customers across the Valley. Due to popular demand, we opened our 32nd location in Arizona. The new location is in Deer Valley and has been open since late December. The location will feature the same menu, and will continue to carry out the values and traditions that our customers are given from our restaurant.

Tim Hoffman, manager of the new location stated, “I‘m very excited to see how this location grows and evolves within the next few months. Being next to the AMC 30 Center is great for us and customers, as they can grab a bite to eat and then go enjoy a movie. It‘s a great neighborhood and the feedback from the new customers has been very positive.”

With that being said, the food at the new restaurant has been a huge hit. New locals are trying our specialty pizzas every day and are continuously shocked that they hadn‘t experienced the taste of Barro‘s before.

The new Barro‘s Pizza Deer Valley location is located at 3053 W Agua Fria Freeway Phoenix, AZ 85027. For more information on our newest Phoenix location or to place an order please call 623-869-0123.

Barro‘s recently announced the five Valley-area students who won $1000 scholarships from Dr Pepper.

Patrick O‘Malley, Steven Larson, Kayla Gillman, Kaylah Klimuck and Amanda Stutzman were each randomly selected as the winners of the scholarship contest.

The students were awarded their scholarship checks in January, at the location where they entered the contest.

At Barro‘s, we try to consistently make an effort to support community efforts, and youth activities is always a priority. We were thrilled when a major brand like Dr Pepper took notice of this and approached us to be the local extension for their scholarship contest.

Through the end of 2012, Dr Pepper gave away more than $1 million in tuition money to students nationwide. Barro‘s was the only Arizona company selected to partner with Dr Pepper for the promotion.

Congratulations to the Arizona winners and keep a look out for another contest in 2013.

Barro‘s East Valley stores spent the holiday season offering $2 off of our pizzas in exchange for non-perishable food donations from customers to benefit the United Food Bank.

Over the two months, the East Valley stores raised 2,399 pounds of canned goods for the Arizona operated United Food Bank.

Barro‘s would like to thank our loyal patrons for all of their generous donations.

Although it may not seem like a few cans of food is going to help end hunger in Arizona, (which is tied as the worst state for child hunger and the 5th worst for overall food insecurity) the thousands of items that Barro‘s collected will be combined with other donations the United Food Bank has raised to provide about 40,000 meals a day for hungry families.

Barro‘s continues to support the mission to end hunger in Arizona through our partnerships with the United Food Bank and St. Mary‘s Food Bank. Both are members of the Association of Arizona Food Banks and share a mission of providing food for struggling local families.

Barro‘s Pizza Raises Over $120,000 in One Day for St. Mary‘s Food Bank On December 4, 2012, Barro‘s Pizza experienced record sales for the year and, through a partnership with St. Mary‘s Food Bank, we donated all of these proceeds to help feed hungry families living in poverty.

The amount of money raised between the Valley‘s 31 Barro‘s restaurants totaled to $120,811.41, which is enough to feed over 800,000 people.

The event attracted the attention of every news channel that day; however, the most important part is that we helped restock the locally operated St. Mary‘s Food Bank. St. Mary‘s is the world‘s first “food bank” and has worked since 1967 to help alleviate hunger in Arizona.

At Barro‘s Pizza, we completely agree with St. Mary‘s mission and were shocked to learn that 1 in 4 children live in poverty in Arizona. We encourage continued support of ending hunger and we look forward to partnering with the St. Mary‘s Food Bank again soon.

According to the United Food Bank, Arizona is tied as the worst state in the U.S. when it comes to child hunger, and 5th worst for overall food insecurity. The holidays are one of the most difficult times for those struggling to make ends meet. With 74% of households living below the federal poverty line, the holidays can become even more of a burden for families that are already struggling in their day to day lives.

Barro‘s East Valley stores (please see participating locations below), are collecting non-perishable food donations, now through December 25, 2012 for United Food Bank.

For every two food items that you donate to the Barro‘s Holiday Food Drive, you will receive $2 off of a Large or Extra Large pizza. Bring in four cans? You will receive $2 off an additional Large or Extra Large Pizza purchased, and so on.

You can either drop the food items off at any of the East Valley locations below or let us know when ordering for delivery that you have food items that you would like picked up.

During the holiday season United Food Bank looks for the following items as they are usually low stocked:

• Canned Meats
• Canned Vegetables
• Boxed Stuffing
• Packaged Mashed Potatoes

They are also always looking to fill their food bank with the following items:

• Cereal
• Chili con Carne or Beef Stew
• Beans
• Canned Vegetables
• Milk
• Canned Tomato products
• Rice & Pasta
• Meat & Meat Alternatives (Tuna, peanut butter)

Please join us in helping the East Valley community this holiday season and make this a successful food drive by dropping off food items to the Barro‘s locations below!

Ahwatukee
Ray Rd. & 48th St.
(480) 759-4400

Casa Grande
Pinal Ave. & McCartney Rd.
(520) 836-6900

Chandler/Ocotillo
Alma School & Germann
(480) 917-0077

Southeast Chandler
Riggs Rd. & McQueen Rd.
480-895-2555

Gilbert
Williams Field Rd. & Val Vista Dr.
(480) 917-0111

Gilbert (Fry‘s Center)
Baseline Rd. & Gilbert Rd.
(480) 892-6265

Maricopa
Smith Enke Rd. & John Wayne Pkwy.
(520) 494-7777

Mesa
Alma School Rd. & Guadalupe Rd.
(480) 897-1825

Brown Rd. & Gilbert Rd.
(480) 834-1541

Signal Butte Rd. & Southern Ave.
(480) 357-3500

Power Rd. & Brown Rd.
(480) 985-2020

Power Rd. & US 60 (Target Center)
(480)-641-1237

Queen Creek
Queen Creek Rd. & Power Rd.
(480) 279-4644

San Tan Valley
Ellsworth Rd. & Hunt Hwy.
(480) 457-1117

Scottsdale Pavilions
Indian Bend Rd. & 101
(480) 302-6555

Tempe
Rural Rd. & Warner Rd.
(480) 831-7676

Baseline Rd. & Mill Ave.
(480) 820-9282

Did you know that 1 in 4 children are living in poverty? When we first heard this statistic we were speechless and decided then and there that we had to do something to help put an end to this.

Surprisingly, twenty-five dollars provides meals for up to 175 people. So whether you are in the mood for some good pizza, wings or salad, or are feeling extra generous this December 4th, stop by one of our 31 restaurants valley-wide to participate and do your part! Find the location nearest to you here: Barro‘s Locations

Locally operated, St. Mary‘s Food Bank is actually the world‘s first “food bank” and has been around since 1967. John van Hengel, the founder of St. Mary‘s Food Bank Alliance stated, “The poor we shall always have with us, but why the hungry?” We could not agree more with a topic so close to our business.

Grab the kids, friends and whoever else you know December 4th and get to a Barro‘s Pizza! You are sure to enjoy the food and will enjoy it even more knowing all of the proceeds are going to such a great cause.

Barro‘s Pizza is always looking for opportunities to help the community. The Barro family is committed to faith, family and football, and they demonstrate their passion through their support of local high school teams.

The Barro family‘s belief in the unity of faith, family and football goes back to their father Angelo, who was a high school football and baseball coach for 25 years. All of the Barro kids played football and baseball at many levels throughout their lives.

The Barro kids now enjoy coaching sports teams, and they are always seeking ways they can help local sports programs at schools. Their children have carried on the family tradition and play football, baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, softball and track.

“We definitely have a love of sports, and that makes it easy for us to be involved and supportive of all sports,” said Ken Barro, co-owner of Barro‘s Pizza.

Barro‘s has supported various high school football programs throughout the Valley in the past, including: Campo Verde, Corona, Desert Vista, Gilbert, Hamilton, Maricopa, Mt. Pointe, Padres, Chandler, Seton College Prep, Dobson, Basha, Perry, San Tan Foothills, Piston Butte and Queen Creek High Schools.

Dr Pepper and Barro‘s Pizza are giving away five $1,000 tuition checks as part of the annual Dr Pepper Tuition Giveaway. Barro‘s will take entries from Sept. 1, 2012 through Nov. 15, 2012. Customers can go to any one of the 31 Barro‘s Pizza locations, www.barrospizza.com or sign up on the Barro‘s Facebook page (www.Facebook.com/barrospizza) to enter. No purchase is necessary to enter or win.

The Barro family has always supported different community efforts, with youth activities being high on the list. Dr Pepper took note of these efforts and approached Barro‘s Pizza about teaming up on a localized extension of its popular national annual promotion. Barro‘s Pizza will be the only restaurant in Arizona to partner with Dr Pepper on this local promotion - a plus for Barro‘s customers.

“Having an opportunity like this, with a well-recognized and national brand, we are more than excited to get this contest going. We cannot wait to see who the winners will be and what their future education goals are,” said Bruce Barro, co-owner of Barro‘s Pizza.

... One family-owned local chain doesn‘t plan on ceding its home turf. Barro‘s Pizza has 31 locations in the area and plans to open two more before the end of the year.

“We‘ve been in Arizona since 1980, so we‘ve been fortunate over the years to grow a repeat customer base,” said Bruce Barro, who owns 13 of the family‘s 31 shops.

The new locations will be near Interstate 17 and Loop 101 in Phoenix, and at 51st Avenue and Baseline Road in Laveen. Barro doesn‘t have any expansion plans yet for 2013. He said newer players in the Phoenix pizza market might want to think twice with the economy still on the rebound.

“If we were opening new stores with an unfamiliar brand in Phoenix, I wouldn‘t have the same confidence,” he said. “But having name recognition and people knowing our product has really helped with the dip in the economy.”

We were so excited to see that we made Hulafrogs list of Top Ten Kid Friendly Restaurants! We are always striving to be your go-to family restaurant in the Valley, so this was a big honor. Hulafrogs told us that we were made a part of the list because of our great food and fun atmosphere for families and kids.

Here‘s what they had to say about us:

“Enjoy a great pizza while your kids play with video games, and other toys designed with you in mind! Their kids’ corner keeps ‘em goin’ while the pizza is bakin’. Great Gluten Free Options available.”

We love being part of family traditions and feeding parents and kids all over the Valley for over 30 years.

We would like to say a big thank you to all of our customers and friends who voted for us in the East Valley Tribune‘s “Best of the East Valley” awards. We came out with TWO awards from the publication—Best Restaurant with an Arizona Vibe and Best Family Friendly Restaurant. After serving families in the Valley for over 30 years, we couldn‘t be prouder of these titles. We were also runners-up in three other categories - Best Italian, Best Pizzeria and Best Lunch Special. Thank you!

We love any chance we can get to help out in the community so when we were asked to help out at this event with Hope & A Future, we had to say yes. Hope & A Future is an Arizona non-profit dedicated to enriching the lives of children and teens living in foster care. On April 7, Michael Oher, the football star who inspired “The Blind Side,” and former foster care child himself, came to Arizona and spoke with 500 youths living in foster care about his story and how they too can reach their true potential. We provided pizza for 500 fosters kids and 250 volunteers, about 750 people all together! It was a great day!

We are so excited to be part of the 11th Annual Kid‘s Café Open, a yearly event planned by St. Mary‘s Food Bank that raises money to supply hungry Arizona children with the food and nourishment they need to live healthy lives. It‘s a sad truth that 1 in 4 children in Arizona live below the poverty line, but it is something that we can help change. The golf open is happening on March 30 at the Wigwam Resort.

St. Mary‘s Food Bank is doing amazing things to help put a stop to childhood hunger in Arizona, by providing the Kid‘s Café, a safe place for children to go after school to get a nutritious meal. They also provide “food packs” at schools, a backpack filled with nonperishable food that the children can take home on Friday and have food all weekend.

This is a cause we feel especially close to because we‘ve built a business on feeding people, and we believe that no child deserves to go to bed hungry.

When two of Barro‘s employees, Tim and Dean, went to Vegas for the Pizza World Games in March, we knew it was going to be a successful trip. Not only did the pair get to network and learn from some of the best pizza chefs in the world, they also brought home some awards from the games. Dean did an amazing job during the “Traditional Pizza” competition, where he cooked up one of Barro‘s famous pepperoni and sausage pies. The competition was tough, but Dean came in Second place in the Southwest region, missing the number one spot by just a fraction of a point! Awesome job, Dean! We don‘t need an award to know that Barro‘s is the best pizza in the world anyways!

Barro‘s Pizza was featured in an article about local businesses integrating social media into their marketing strategies. We love interacting with customers on social media and in person!
Link to article.

Food and Flourish ran an exciting article that announced our gluten-free menu being offered at all our locations. We‘re so excited to be able to cater to customers who are gluten intolerant!
Link to article.

Two of our employees, Tim and Dean, had the opportunity to go on Fox 10 and show off some of their best moves in preparation for the World Pizza Games. It was such a fun segment and we were happy the anchors even got to join in on the fun!

Barro‘s Pizza got a shout-out in Scottsdale Business and Life‘s weekly newsletter about Tim and Dean heading to the Pizza World Games.

The blogosphere was buzzing when Barro‘s Pizza started offering gluten-free pizza at our East Valley locations. Thanks to Chandice from Gluten-Free Frenzy for the awesome review! She loved that our GF pizza still had that Barro‘s original flavor.
Link to article.

Restaurant Critic and foodie, Jess Harter, reviewed one of our Mesa locations for the Arizona Republic online. He only has the best things to say about Barro‘s in his review!
Link to article.

Our Gilbert location was super successful when they launched gluten-free pizza in 2010. The Arizona Republic wrote about our choice to go gluten- free and how it has benefited Barro‘s.
Link to article.

Metromix Phoenix breaks down the top places for pizza by the slice in Phoenix and Barro‘s was at the top of the list! And they mentioned our delicious and cheap lunch specials.