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Pizza Ranch
American fast casual pizza chain From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Pizza Ranch, Inc., founded in 1981,[2][3] is a Midwestern fast casual buffet restaurant chain with more than 200 locations. It specializes in pizza and chicken.[4][5]
Pizza Ranch has over 200 locations[6] in Iowa, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Tennessee, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.[7][8]
Pizza Ranch is a Christian-based company.[9][10] The Pizza Ranch vision is "To glorify God by positively impacting the world we live in".[10]
Because Iowa has the first caucus for US presidential primary elections, Pizza Ranch's 66 locations in Iowa are a frequent stop for presidential candidates, particularly Republicans due to the chain's conservative bent.[11][12][13]
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History
In 1981, Pizza Ranch was founded by Adrie Groeneweg and Lawrence Vander Esch.[10][14][15] The first restaurant location opened on December 21, 1981, in Hull, Iowa.[16][17]
In 1983, two years later, the second Pizza Ranch opened in Orange City, Iowa.[18]
In 2001, Vander Esch left the company after being arrested and sent to prison for sexual abuse involving fraudulently obtaining semen samples of their teen employees under the pretense of a prostate study. Vander Esch was discharged from prison in March 2006, according to the Iowa Department of Corrections. Later that year, a district court judge, citing an Iowa Supreme Court ruling in a separate case, vacated his conviction and cleared his record.
In 2005, the chain's headquarters, formerly located in Hull, Iowa, moved to Orange City, Iowa.[7][8]
In 2008, the 'Pizza Ranch strategy' was first noted in Mike Huckabee's campaign at the 2008 Republican caucuses; Huckabee went on to win the caucuses despite being a longshot candidate.[19]
In 2024, an Iowa man achieved the feat of visiting every Pizza Ranch location in existence.[20]
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See also
References
External links
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