Rio to Get Pizza Joint in 2026 and JFC the Name is Annoying
Rio has announced it’s opening a new pizza restaurant, which would typically be the source of glee for us.
Unfortunately, the name of the place is “&pizza.” No, really. They also refer to it as “&PIZZA.” How much irk has this sparked in us? More than some. Now, we have to make our story about how annoying the name is, rather than how excited we are to have some potentially great pizza at Rio.
This is simply not how English works. It’s not how naming things works. You can call your restaurant “Pizza,” but you can’t do it all lowercase, and you can’t start the name with an ampersand. Please, casinos, check with us before you make decisions like this. We will shake you until you exhibit some common sense. Until then, you have to deal with snark, sorry-not-sorry.
So, “&Pizza,” our reluctant compromise, is pronounced “And Pizza.” Although, we’re pretty sure a lot of people are going to call it “Ampersand Pizza” just to protest the confounding name. We are likely to be one of those people.
“And Pizza” seems to imply pizza is a side dish, but it’s the main component of the menu.
When people see the name of your pizza restaurant, they should be thinking about pizza, not about what other special characters could’ve been slapped in front of pizza like ~Pizza (Tilde Pizza), ^Pizza (Caret Pizza), or {Pizza} (Curly Brackets Pizza). And don’t get us started with Pilcrow Pizza, we can’t even find that one on our keyboard.
The name “&Pizza” is an editorial nightmare, whether lower, upper or title case.
You can’t start a sentence with “&.” That’s one of the immutable laws of our language, like the rule where “tough” suddenly means “awesome” despite there never having been a memo to that effect.
Rio, the name of your restaurant looks like a typo, a placeholder somebody forgot to fill in.
The name is already dated and self-conscious and the place hasn’t even opened yet!
Don’t waste your time trying to Google “&Pizza,” it will just laugh at you. Do you realize how hard it is to get Google to laugh unless you’re throwing shade at Yahoo?
This is the first “&Pizza” in Las Vegas. Oh, that’s right, “&Pizza” has been sentenced to quotation mark jail until further notice.
Here’s what the news release says about “&Pizza.” We haven’t actually read this blurb, as we fear our head might explode: “Founded in 2012, &pizza is a mission-driven, culture carrying community dedicated to better flavor, quality ingredients, and community betterment. Part of Latitude Food Group, &pizza is proud to differentiate themselves, doing more for their workers by providing a livable wage, a socially conscious vision, and real action to help advance real social progress. &pizza has locations across the East Coast in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia, and will soon be entering Nevada, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.”
It’s a lot of hoopla for a restaurant that’s lending its unfortunate name and menu to Rio, but which will be owned and operated by Rio.
This brand is trying just a wee too hard. Their Web site says, “&pizza isn’t just where you grab a pie. It’s where the rule-breakers, risk-takers, and flavor chasers come to fuel up.”
We have honestly never wanted to punch a brand in the nuts before, but deep breaths, it’s pizza.
Here’s more information from the news release we have not read: “Not afraid to do things differently, &pizza has kicked the status quo to the curb and has delivered a vibe, creative menu, and an unshakable commitment to societal betterment that has earned the brand a cult-like following. The music is turned up, the atmosphere is electric, and employees are encouraged to be themselves. The real fun begins with the menu, which takes creativity right to the edge. Iconic pies such as The Farmer’s Daughter, Moonstruck, Elote Loco, and Pineapple Jak’d, as well as limited time additions such as the eyebrow-raising Dickle, bring its unique dough, sauces and drizzles to life, and are indicative of the unapologetic vibe the brand brings to the world of pizza.”
Just when we thought we were out, the “eyebrow-raising Dickle” pulls us back in.
You can get an idea of the menu offerings at the “&Pizza” official site.
All the pizzas seem to have stuff drizzled on them. We trust you can ask to have your pizza drizzle-free, as would be our preference.
The Cheese Pie looks wonderful. Nothing is drizzled on it, at all. The way Mother Nature intended pizza to be.
Ampersand Pizza has a side range of signature pizzas that remix familiar ingredients like pepperoni, chicken, bacon, mushrooms with the aforementioned drizzles (hot honey, ranch, mambo sauce, fig balsamic), as well as vegan and plant-based options for some unknown reason.
Beyond pizza, the menu includes salads, garlic knots and specialty knots (including dessert versions), cheesy dippers, cookies and other sweets.
We might make fun of the name, but you know we’ll be all over the knots and Oreo dippers (a throwback to the deep-fried Oreos at Mermaids).
While Rio may be in the throes of some serious business struggles, it continues to tweak its restaurant offerings.
Rio just opened The Kitchen Table to replace the permanently closed Hash House A Go Go. Don’t get us started with that capital “A.”
Also recently opened at Rio is another concept with a name even more offensive than “&Pizza.” It’s Eggslut. Again, please consult with us prior to any decisions related to restaurants and names, thanks. There’s a reason the opening of Eggslut got so little news coverage. It’s vulgar (and also not very good, but it’s mostly the vulgarity thing).
The new pizza joint will be located between Eggslut and the casino’s sportsbook.
Ampersand Pizza will be a welcome addition to the dining options at Rio, despite having a name that will haunt our dreams.
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