Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzeria in Waterloo, IA

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Telephone:	+1 319-233-3323
Address:	1934 Washington St, Waterloo, IA, 50702
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:	1.6 miWaterloo Freight Station
Categories:	Pizza

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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations	No
Delivery	Yes
Take-out	Yes
Accepts Credit Cards	Yes
Parking	Private Lot
Good for Kids	Yes
Good for Groups	Yes

Attire	Casual
Noise Level	Quiet
Alcohol	Beer & Wine Only
Outdoor Seating	No
Has TV	Yes
Waiter Service	Yes
Caters	Yes

Today

Today	11:00 am – 9:30 pm Closed now
Local time (Waterloo)	00:16 Thursday, 17 July 2025

Business hours

Monday	–
Tuesday	11:00 am – 9:30 pm
Wednesday	11:00 am – 9:30 pm
Thursday	11:00 am – 9:30 pm
Friday	11:00 am – 9:30 pm
Saturday	3:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Sunday	11:00 am – 9:30 pm

Description

Specialties

Pizza, Pasta, Sandwiches, and Much More!

History

Established in 1962.

Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzaria

Welcome!

Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzeria has been serving the Cedar Valley with a time honored tradition of great quality pizza, pasta and sandwiches for more than 50 years. Mama Nick’s still uses only top quality ingredients piled atop our made to order pizzas such as fresh ground beef and sausage mixed with our family spices, fresh sliced meats and chopped veggies topped with 100% real mozzarella cheese and our secret seasoning. Try our baked French bread sandwiches or delicious hand breaded pork tenderloins along with your choice of fresh cut French fries or seasoned Greek fries.

Stop in and try our unique homestyle all you can eat lunch buffet with our famous fried chicken, Buffalo wings, pizza, pasta, soups, meatloaf or Salisbury steak. You’re sure to find your favorites from 11am-2pm Tuesday through Friday and Sunday or try our all you can eat dinner buffet Tuesday evenings from 4pm-8pm.

Dine-in, carry-out or let us bring a fresh made meal to your door!

Meet the Business Owner

George N.

Business Owner

Who We Are

How it all began over 54 years ago!

I began working for Andy Psaros at the Circle Pizzeria on East 4^th street on a Friday night in 1958 while attending high school. I developed a friendship with Andy and his wife Connie while continuing on to attend college at UNI.

Andy offered my mother and I who would affectionately be known as Mama Nick (short for Nicholas) an opportunity to purchase the restaurant as Andy was interested in operating a local night club known as the Music Box. My mother and I purchased the Circle Pizzeria on May 14^th, 1962 appropriately renaming it Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzeria; a day I remember fondly. Over time Mama coined the phrase «Mama puts a little love in every pizza”€ making our restaurant more than just a place for dinner, but a family tradition passed on from generation to generation.

In 1970 we relocated to our current location which was later expanded in 1975 to accommodate the growing business. The business was later remodeled and expanded

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11 reviews of Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzeria

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Aaron S.

Place rating: 2
Waterloo, IA

There pizza used to be so good, some of the best in town. Now there’s about five or six places I would rather go for pizza.

Jacy B.

Place rating: 5
Waterloo, IA

Absolutely the best bacon Cheeseburger I’ve ever had! My boyfriend and I were craving a good burger after a long day at the water park and he suggested Mama Nick’s. At first I wasn’t so sure because it’s a pizza place and I had never been there before. I honestly was expecting a mediocre burger but was very pleasantly surprised! The burger was cooked and seasoned perfectly and was so juicy! I’m already craving another one!

Jeff G.

Place rating: 1
Cedar Rapids, IA

We have passed this place a few times driving into Cedar Falls and due to the lack of gluten free options for my girlfriend we decided to stop and give it a try.
She ordered the Vegetarian and I built my own pizza with four toppings. We were among the only ones in the restaurant and most certainly the only ones not eating and yet it took over 30 minutes for both of our pizzas to come out. After about 20 minutes of not getting checked on I asked about our order and magically it was done.
Pizza had have been sitting out for a while because of the temperature, not to mention the gentlemen who appeared from the back not once but two times to watch the Nascar race was the one «cooking» our food.
The pizza sucked. Sauce tasted like Classico from the grocery store and it was basically frozen pizza quality with the only saving grace being the crust.
Finally, to top it off, those two pies were $ 40??? Gotta be kidding me. Tomasos in Cedar Rapids prices with Jack’s quality. Never again.

Michael C.

Place rating: 5
Clinton, IA

Great pizza. We ordered the George’s special and Mikes special. The Mikes special was very spicy. Both were great pizzas. Yes it is expensive. But it is the best pizza I’ve ever had. Much much better than Pizza Hut. But lately I don’t consider what Pizza Hut makes pizzas. Expect delays on Friday and Saturday night because they are very busy. They are busy for a reason. This is great pizza.

Andrew F.

Place rating: 4
Waterloo, IA

We have pizza here every week. Always friendly and delicious! Quicker than they say and great service

Ditte K.

Place rating: 1
Denmark

We ordered from mama nicks last night. 19 dollars earned us a small, cold pizza, with a card board consistency and an unimpressive sauce and filling. Disappointing, we won’t order here again

Marybeth A.

Place rating: 1
Belgrade, MT

Ordered anchovies pizza but they thought they were out of anchovies. When they checked, they had anchovies. Pizza was average. Ordered mozzarella sticks, they were out. Ordered Corona from menu — they don’t carry it as my more. Asked about microbrews and the waitress said «I don’t know what you are talking about». Greek salad was iceberg lettuce with Kalamata olives and feta cheese and some crazy looking green dressing they called «Greek» but unidentifiable. More like a Midwest deep fry restaurant with midwest versions of pizza.

Dan M.

Place rating: 1
Waterloo, IA

Facts:
— We had four people in our party, and only three of our four orders came back, and after an hour long wait too.
— One of the orders was incorrect (after this hour long wait), and we asked for it to be re-done.
— We were the only customers in the restaurant, so we knew it was not a busy day.
— We eventually decided not to pay for the two orders we were still waiting on (after the first hour had gone by). The manager verbally disagreed with us and defended his stance that we pay by saying that he himself was responsible for forgetting the fourth order — that he forgot to cook it. I’m still trying to reason why he thought that argument made sense.
— In the end, we only paid for two orders, and left Mama Nick’s with two of our party un-fed (after 1 hour and 30 minutes of waiting).
Opinion:
— This business needs help, and from the reactions of the manager… this business needs a new manager too.
— Food is not very good, and certainly not worth waiting 1 hour 30 minutes, particularly when one dish is messed up, and the other was forgotten.

Paula G.

Place rating: 2
Waterloo, IA

We had a Deep Dish pizza delivered when we first moved in to Waterloo 2 months ago. The dough and crust tasted really bad. It was really dense and dry. The cheese and toppings were good however, but the dough is a really important part of the pizza! It was also very very expensive. $ 23 for one large pizza (not including tip). Maybe the other crusts are better, but stay away from the deep dish.

David S.

Place rating: 2
Peoria, IL

I would say our experience was probably similar to Rachel’s review, but we did have pretty decent service. We had a 14″ pizza, regular crust, pepperoni, green pepper and mushroom. It took maybe 20 minutes or so, but it’s pizza so that was expected. It didn’t blow our minds or anything, it was just ok. This was recommended to us by a co-worker who just thought the world of their pizza, but again we didn’t think it was that great. The sauce was bland, crust wasn’t dried out but just plain tasting, like flour and water. Pizza crust should have a little richness to it, usually by adding olive oil into the dough. This had no such taste. The toppings were a little skimpy. And for the price I would have expected more. I’m probably being nit-picky because of the sterling recommendation and then it didn’t turn out as great as we hoped. I wouldn’t avoid this place, I just wouldn’t go out of my way to go there again.
The other thing, which is harder to overlook when the food is mediocre, is the décor. Just terrible. Pictures of pheasants, hunting dogs and ducks on the wall. I know this is Iowa but this is supposed to be an Italian pizza place. Ditch that junk and make the atmosphere a little more appropriate.

Rachel S.

Place rating: 2
Otsego, MN

Hometown hot spot for sure. Lots of locals when we got there. Pizza was hot when it finally got to our table. Crust is homemade everyday. Tasted great, but I wouldn’t say it was worth the wait. I want to give it 4 stars because I like local shops that know how to make their food, but –SLOW, inattentive servers, wait were there any? Maybe we’ll call in our order the next time we are traveling through the area.

Mama Nick’s Circle Pizzeria

Waterloo, United States