Rocky Rococo Pan Style Pizza

I’ve been sitting on this review for a few days. At first I wasn’t going to review this place for a couple reasons: I think it’s sorta tacky to review chains, I don’t eat a ton of fast food so it’s hard to make fair comparisons. I was making an exception, though, Rocky’s sent us a bunch of coupons and I was feeling nostalgic for my days growing up in Madison, going to the Rocky’s location there with my fast food-​loving dad.
But I changed my mind because I think there’s something instructive here to other businesses, and I feel like it’s a great example to set where good management can really help improve the rating I give a business. In this case, things started out at a solidly 1.5÷2 stars level and ended up with three stars because of the actions of the manager on duty.
In brief, the employee working the counter when we got there was just incompetent. A line had formed because the employee was not at all understanding the order the guy was wanting to place (from what I overheard, two pizzas: one with pepperoni and mushroom, the other with sausage). Not only did the guy not understand the order for a good couple of minutes, he then tried to split the order across two tickets and screwed up processing the customer’s coupon.
After maybe five minutes of that, the manager took over and the line actually started moving. The «complicated» order got placed within about 45 seconds, and then the guy in front of me, and then my fiancée and I.
He doubled the coupon we were using either because of the wait or because he was just a nice guy. He was obviously a little flustered (and who wouldn’t be, you’ve got a room full of customers waiting to order, the drive through buzzer is going off, and the phone is ringing and the only guy there to help you is standing there with his thumb up his ass) but he pulled through. He did seem like he was cracking up a bit while placing our order (repeating «dine in» several times to the tune of the song that was playing), but… I get it. This guy needs a vacation.
I suppose since this is a review and all I should actually mention the food. It’s Rocky’s. It’s thick, the dough is always a little undercooked, and the sauce is almost a little sweet. As far as fast-​food pizza goes, it’s better than Pizza Hut’s anemic slices, but you are of course better off with a proper pizzeria if you can get to one. I can’t really fault a fast-​food place for the quality of the food, though.
All things considered, it was okay to get the «once every few months» fast food craving out of my system.

It was good, not great, but good. The breadsticks were the highlight of the meal, the pizza was average.
Definitely not as good as I remembered from my childhood, but it was a nice change from the fast food burger joints of the world.

I wish I could say that I tried the pizza, but after 15 minutes and two phone calls, I gave up. I am in town for a few days visiting customers, and when I queried the front desk, they recommended Rocky Rococo. So, I call and I asked the young lady that answered the phone if there were any popular pizza’s and she stated «I don’t know.» I asked about the different crusts, and she stated «our pizza’s are all pan. I had a menu and was asking specific questions, and she was clueless. I told her that I would take a look at the menu and call back. When I did call back, I asked «can anyone there recommend a favorite pizza. She said, very frustrated «hold on.» She finally came back and said our «pepperoni and sausage are popular or one with all meat.» So, after some discussion, she asked the address, and I told her the name of the hotel (very close to them) and she hesitates and say’s, very curtly, «what’s the address?» When I stated that I didn’t know, she told me she had to have the address. When I asked to speak to the manager, I explained my dilemma, and then he stated «are you placing an order or not?» I said, no, I think I will send the owner an email and he hung up. No knowledge, no passion, no answers, no order. I realize that you’re busy and I’m just one customer, however…

Wish I could review how the pizza tasted but didn’t have the chance.
Two stars for the woman that answered the call when I was placing my pick up order. She couldn’t answer any of my questions (how many inches are your pizzas… etc)and to top it off, she was rude.
Decided to go to another pizza joint.

Rocky’s might be my pizza of choice when it comes fast food style pizza. The Italian sausage on this pizza is huge and delicious. The sauce is really good, towing the line between sweet and tangy. The crust is doughy, which I actually like and is even more awesome when it’s made into the stuffed crust in their mother lode and mother roni slices. The mother lode has me thinking about Rocky Rococo every Saturday when it is the Super Slice of the Day.
This place, as far as I can tell, hasn’t changed their mascot since at least the 80’s. To say he is creepy is an understatement. It’s pretty tough to eat inside the establishment when he’s peppered all over the restaurant. He looks like the love child of Super Mario and Boris Badenov, and has a total «sex offender» look about him.
Please Rocky’s, stop wrapping up so much stuff in foil. It’s bad for the environment!
If you come in here hungry, here’s a word of advice. Stay away from the breadsticks, they’re over seasoned, over baked and very underwhelming. A salad is a decent substitute, while they make them basic (lettuce, tomato, carrots and cucumber), they are big and accompanied by your choice of Newman’s Own Dressings. The Hershey Kiss cookies are a pretty tasty dessert and they serve them warm.

Been gone for 18 years… still as good as it was then. A specific pizza taste that draws you back again and again.

Even though I don’t remember having any actual dreams about Rocky’s, I know I do somewhere in the depths of my brain. If they wanted to take over the national pizza chain business, they could. Where do I begin?
First, deep dish pizza by the slice in addition to whole (rectangular!) pizzas. This is all I ever actually get. Their «Super Slice» is the perfect size for lunch, and the regular is good for those with less of an appetite. And their by-​the-​slice options aren’t just cheese, pepperoni, or sausage. Oh no — they do supreme and other specialties too. Of course, you’re at the mercy of what they have, but usually you’ll find something delicious. I usually get The Perfect (a perfect supreme), but if none available I will default to a sausage and mushroom which they almost always have.
Second, their Italian sausage is the best I’ve ever had on any pizza, which blows my mind because I’ve eaten at so many great pizza joints and Mr. Roccoco still beats ‘em. Huge chunks that don’t skimp on all of those delicious Italian spices.
Last but not least, Mr. Rocky Roccoco himself. Seriously, one cool cat of a mascot.
This location was as good as any I’ve been to, and is located conveniently on the way to MKE. If only they were in other states besides Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Washington (Who swung that one? Lucky…). 5-​stars because it’s by far the best pizza chain, and most people have never heard of them.

The moment strikes you. You are going about your daily business without a care in the world when suddenly, a craving that cannot be contained overpowers you with both a sense of longing for your appetite and feeding for your soul. Sometimes, it’s triggered by a thought of grandma’s homemade biscuits at Thanksgiving or your auntie’s double-​triple chocolate cake. Other times, like this morning, it was for something not homemade, but still the stuff of nostalgic reminiscing. This morning, it was for my dearly-​loved Rocky Rococo — the square slice with the equally square nuggets of sausage or round little spices of pepperoni.
I moved away from Wisconsin years ago (we used to go to the location where Beans and Barley on the Eastside is now), but my love for Rocky Rococo’s has yet to diminish. Whenever I am back in town, I make a point of trying to get a slice. Sometimes, I am disappoint (i.e. at Mayfair mall where the crust is sometimes not done enough), but more times than not, it’s like biting into my youth again. I remember going to Rocky’s after my basketball games when I was in grade school or on the weekends when my dad was working on his dissertation for his PhD at UW-​Milwaukee and going there after his library time was my reward as a kid. I remember getting older and going there with friends while I was in high school or making a way to the location at Bayshore when I was working at my after school job. (Bayshore location ROCKS btw!).
I always got pepperoni or sausage, but, when I was feel a bit more adventurous, both with a whole lot of dried peppers. When I moved away for college, where weren’t any Rocky’s on campus and after I graduated and moved to upstate New York, Rocky’s locations were hundreds of miles away. Finally, I moved to Louisville and there was one location at 4^th Street Live! It wasn’t as great as the locations in Milwaukee, but it was something! I was reunited. The reunion was short lived, however, because I ultimately wound up back in upstate New York and now in MD permanently.
I love where I live, but the lack of Rocky’s (and Baker’s Square, which I have an inexplicable love for as well do to their ‘skillets,’) hurts me to my soul.
If someone at corporate is reading this review, please, for the love of GOD, open some Rocky Rococo locations in MD. Bmore would love it, but I know the rest of the state as well. It’s not fair of you to deprive the east coast of your yummy goodness. Have pity on us and share the joy at is your squareness.

I have been going to various locations of the Rocky chain since I was a kid. Like everything else the portions have gotten a little smaller, but not too bad — could be good since I don’t seem to burn off the slices as easily as I used to either, maybe they were thinking about me over the years!
The taste has not changed — it’s a comfort food for me. It’s not like a deep dish from Gino’s in Chicago or a thin crust like in NY; it’s a good solid «fast food» style pizza that you can even get through a drive through.
Keep in mind, it’s «fast food» pizza for the slices and I love them! Whenever I am back in WI and see one I can’t resist stopping in for a slice!

I love Rocky Rococo’s with all my heart. People grumble all the time about the doughy crust, but the pizza sauce and the strong flavor from the amazing sausage make this one of the best fast food pizzas I’ve ever had. Let’s not forget about the breadsticks. Hopefully you’re eating them at the restaurant (or the food court), because they don’t travel very well. Dipping them in both the marinara sauce and the nacho cheese (costs extra) is something I frequently think about when I’m out of town for work.
I’m one of the few amongst my friends who loves this place, but in terms of tradition (going to Rocky’s after school when it was on Farwell, going in the food courts of Mayfair, Grand Ave, and Southridge malls during high school, making sure to visit when on vacations back home from college) it’s one of my favorite Wisconsin institutions.

Deep dish, buttery crust! This pizza is so good. The sausage is so delicious and comforting, especially in the winter. I recommend ordering a fresh pizza, versus ordering just a slice. The breadsticks come with marinara, but you can order them with cheese sauce and it is so good.

Yummy! Ditto on what the first two reviews said. Loved it!

I love rocky’s. it is my favorite food on the planet.
I grew up on Rocky’s pizza, and now I come back to wisconsin to eat it.
Admittedly, it is not for everyone. It has a doughy, almost underdone crust, overly-​herbed sauce, and sometimes lacking on cheese. BUT it is crazy delicious. The sausage is the best i’ve ever had on pizza. Leave your biases at the door, this pizza is different — and that is what makes it so special.
The chain is in serious decline from its ‘glory’ expansion years past, which makes me sad. Support rocky’s pizza! I usually hit this spot after flying into Mitchell, Bayshore, and the Madison locations (which are great).
Even if you are a die-​hard thin crust, ny slice, deep dish or whatever fan, Rocky’s is an absolutely unique, one-​of-​a-​kind pizza and you owe it to yourself to give it a fair chance.

One of the first chain pizza restaurants I remember eating at when I was a kid growing up in the Midwest. This is thick crust, Chicago style pizza that you eat with a fork like lasagna. It’s pretty damn good with fresh ingredients for a chain. They sell by the slice but I always recommend getting a full pie so it’s really fresh.