Sahara Pizza opens in Birch Bay Square

A new pizza franchise has opened its doors in Birch Bay Square.

Sahara Pizza introduced the community to its newest location during a September 28 soft opening, which owners say has been met with success. 

“There’s not a lot of options up here, food-wise,” said Dan McDowell, co-owner of the Birch Bay location. “We can tell already by the response we’re getting that’s it nice to bring really good food to the area. I think people are really enjoying it.”

Sahara Pizza started in 2002 and has since grown to 19 locations, five of which are in Bolivia, said Tom Wartinger, Sahara Pizza’s CEO and co-owner of the Birch Bay location. Wartinger said he saw the need for good pizza after moving to the area about a year ago to be closer to his grandchildren.

The franchise’s pizza is different from other restaurants because of its fresh ingredients, Wartinger said. The dough is made fresh daily with olive oil instead of grease, the cheese comes from a Wisconsin dairy farm, the sauce doesn’t have preservatives and ranch is homemade.

“I won’t switch,” he said. “A lot of other companies take their product and then go, ‘Oh, I can save $5.’ That doesn’t happen here. We still use the same stuff as 20 years ago even with food costs that are crazy high.”

The restaurant owners hope to add a few indoor and outdoor tables and eventually create an outdoor beer garden. Sahara Pizza, which currently delivers about 12 minutes from the store, hopes to deliver beer and wine in the future. 

They also want to help the community through things such as joining the local chamber of commerces, working with Blaine school district and sponsoring local sports teams.

“We really want to be involved in the community,” Wartinger said. “We’re trying to support them in many different ways.”

Sahara Pizza is located at 8115 Birch Bay Square, suite 121. The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, call 360/922-3500.