El Fredo Pizza

LOVE their pizza! We always get pepperoni with the house sauce. Their east side location is so convenient too if you live on that side of town!

This is another Sioux City favorite. I’ll start by providing some non-​controversial facts. The format of the restaurant is unusual. You order your pizza/​breadsticks from a central window and then seat yourself. Plates, napkins, silverware, etc., are located at the bar, which is in the middle of restaurant. If you order a drink, you also need to retrieve that from the bar area. When you food is ready, your number is called and you go up to the pick up window. Almost every time I have ever been to El Fredo’s I have seen a newb confused by the procedure for just getting your food and drink.
The pizza, to my taste, is okay. It is sort of unique. it is a medium-​thin crust, slightly crunchy. The real difference maker is the sauce. They generously sauce their pizzas at El Fredos, with a homemade, slightly sweet, marina. The toppings are typical and the meats can register on the greasy side. All in all it is a fine pizza place, although I would enjoy it more if it were a full service restaurant. That said, and this is what causes controversy for Sioux City folks, I don’t think it is anything special and it probably isn’t a restaurant that I would go out of my way for.

This place has been around a long long time but I hadn’t been here in many years. We went for pizza with friends last night. Walked in and the place was very busy (a good sign). Ordered pizza and a dinner salad. Lots of families in the place and we found a table in the tiered room. Not sure if they ever do comedy nights here like they use to. Our pizza arrived and was delicious. The dinner salads had been forgotten. They quickly made them. I would not recommend the salad. Iceberg lettuce and a spear of cheese and olives. The pizza had very good flavor. Crust was a bit floppy and would be my only criticism. Sauce had a nice sweetness to it which was good for something different. We will be back again.

I remember going here after baseball games as a kid. Great memories and consistently delicious. Best pizza in town hands down!

You’ve had Chicago deep dish and New York style, California fusion styles, etc. Now it’s time for Sioux City style pizza.
It was our first visit today. The pizza was really good. The original sauce was delicious. The crust had an almost sourdough taste and a sweetness to it. I’ve had all kinds of pizza around the country and this one was unique. Really, I think they set a local standard. The toppings were piled on. Most of the pepperoni slices were crispy. I can’t wait to have another slice.
We were unfamiliar with the process, so we had gone in and seated ourselves. There is no wait service. Instead you are supposed to order at the counter just inside the door. When your pizza is ready they call your number.
This was our first visit, but I am sure we will go back next time we are on the west side of Sioux City.

We went here for dinner while in town for a concert. We got the cheese breadsticks and a large pizza to share. The sauce is different than any other pizza sauce we’ve ever had. It’s tangy and almost tastes like it has some taco seasonings with it. VERY delicious! Not shy with the toppings either! We had enough for leftovers and it was even great reheated!

Based on the 4 ½ stars, the locals must love it. However, if you’re from anywhere where pizza tastes like pizza, you’ll be wishing you had your $ 10 back!
PS — My husband would like to add that the humor in the grammar error of the company motto is made even funnier when you consider no one on staff at the pizzeria, the print shop, or the signage company noticed it. #NJpizzasnobs

Absolutely incredible pizza! Great little vibey place too. I come from Arizona was traveling across the U.S. and found this place using Unilocal.Now my favorite pizza place in Phoenix is ruined because this pizza was so good!

Best pizza in Sioux city. The quality is great and they aren’t shy when adding toppings. The cheese breadsticks are really good and they give you a huge pan of them. Definitely worth the money to come here. The taste is great and the atmosphere is too.

I have been loving El Fredo’s ever since I was in high school — class of ’82! I moved to Arizona in the the late 80’s and every time I come back to visit family it is on my must-​list next to seeing my mom & dad. Wow — still cooked masterfully & the sauce is truly unique and delicious — thank you for making such an amazing pizza!

Pizza was quite good. Not my favorite pizza I’ve ever had in my entire life, but it was very tasty and a well above average take-​out pizza. The sauce is what made the pizza. It has some extra zing in there compared to most pizzas. They’re not shy with the toppings or cheese.
Typical pizza parlor atmosphere, order as you walk in, wait (not for long I might add), sit in the dining room, eat, leave. A nice touch was the bar near the dining room. They had good, cheap drinks ready to go.

Easily the best pizza in town! They pile on the toppings, and their original sauce is delicious! The jumbo pizza is a great deal, and feeds my family for two meals. Their veggie-lover’s pizza is so loaded with toppings, you don’t even notice it doesn’t have meat. Although my fav is pepperoni or Hawaiian. I’ve only done take-​out, as the atmosphere in the restaurant isn’t great, but the pizza is worth the drive and worth every penny.

So we are fairly new to the area and were hungry for some good pizza (thus eliminating Pizza Hut, Dominos and the like from the pool of choices). We had already tried Jerry’s and Tomacelli’s and very much liked them, but were in the mood to try something new and different. I had heard El Fredo’s sauce was in fact a little different so was a bit apprehensive about trying it but decided to go for it. Sure glad we did. It was AMAZING! We got a large The «Works» and a large with Alfredo sauce, chicken and cheese for the kids, who often times are hard to please, and they all loved it. The sauce is different, but I can’t put my finger on what is in it that makes it so. I wanna say like a Mexican spice or something. Well whatever… it is fantastically delicious:)! Also, (and IMO as important as the yummy food) the young man taking our order and then helping us when we arrived to pick up our pizza was very sweet (and adorable I hope he doesn’t mind me saying:). One last thing… I asked that ¹⁄₃ of our «Works» pizza be without olives. Unlike most pizza places do with such a request, this was done perfectly without a skimping of the olives on the other part of the pizza… much to my husbands delight since he loves olives (and I don’t obviously). We will definitely be back again!

You can’t really top El Fredos! Have been ordering from here for years & have no complaints. One of the best pizza places around. We recently had Old Chicago pizza & the sauce tasted familiar. Hmmm… El Fredos has been around much longer! Lol

Very mediocre pizza. Truly nothing good stands out. The texture of the crust is similar to Casey’s gas station pizza, but the flavor is not as good. The pizza sauce is horrible. The breadsticks are dry and gross. I really do not recommend this place.

Very good pizza. Love the local atmosphere, and 70’s feel. We also tried the baked Ziti, and it was also very good. Great place to try if you haven’t experienced it. Don’t expect a fancy place. You order when you walk in. Wait for your number to be called, then enjoy.

As a pizza lover who hails from NYC pizza, I’d have to say this is the best pizza in the Siouxland area. Too bad they no longer deliver…

Ordered a large pizza for take out. FANTASTIC! The original sauce is great! It’s got a little bit of a spicy bite to it. The cheese was fresh and the pepperoni had just a bit of crisp to it. Great meal!

One of my favorite pizza places. A nice spicy sauce and it’s cooked until the pepperoni starts to crisp.
It is hard to judge pizza due to how different it from area to area. That being said, the Sioux City area seems to have quite a few really good pizza places with each of them being a different style.

Ambiance: Been here twice and have enjoyed both times. The place has two major seating areas one feels like a parlor shop with pearly plastic bench seating while the other is a den-​like lair with a tiny stage, each with their own atmospheres. The den, admittedly has a somewhat high ceiling and little cushion to absorb sound which makes it prone to sounding noisy. It’s all self-​service here so no complaints really about getting drinks or wait times.
Food: We started with cheese bread which is essentially a thinner pizza crust topped with cheese and which you dip into a tomato sauce, almost a deconstructed pizza. You can probably skip this if you’re getting a pizza although it is a good thing to share. The pizza has a good crust which we ordered well-​done to guarantee hefty crunch but it was still moist, slightly chewy, and not too heavy. It was topped with a nice complex sauce with overtones of a sweet red wine like marsala and spices that give it some punch and a hint of heat. The cheese was copious without being obnoxious, thoroughly melted, and perfectly browned. Toppings were plentiful and well-​dispersed.
Overall this place was pretty tasty. The cheese bread resembled a pizza too much but was a good appetizer nonetheless. The pizza itself was well-​composed although the sweet-​spicy sauce which sets it apart from every other pizza place might not be for everyone or fit in to the idea of a stereotypical pizza sauce. Definitely worth trying.