The Building
The building at 102 Watson Street has a rich history dating to the 1870’s. It
was at various times a saloon, a battery shop, a piano and music store, and
an ice cream shop. In 1959, the space was a restaurant named Mill’s Grill,
which later became the Maple Lunch Restaurant, then the Hopp Inn
Restaurant, and finally, in the 1970s, Gus’s Pizza Palace
The Business
Roadhouse Pizza got its start in Fond du Lac and was brought to 102 Watson
in Ripon in 1978 when Larry Brunett purchase the building. From 1978 through 2007 Roadhouse Pizza
was run by the Brunett family. During this period Roadhouse Pizza became an iconic location in
Ripon many high schoolers and college kids had there first date or went to hang out with friends
and family. The menu featuring pizza and the Hoagies remained virtually unchanged during this period!
In the 1980, Larry Brunett commissioned ( sort of ) Brad Fisher to paint the infamous mural that
depicts gnomes, trolls and a pastoral setting. The "mural" still hangs out in the main dining room!
The Big Renovation
In 2007 the business was purchased by Boca Grande Capital LLC. The property underwent a massive renovation
from 2009 - 2010. The restaurant was renovated and expanded to include the 104 Watson street building,
creating two floors of bright and beautiful space. Historic architectural features and the iconic wall
mural were preserved while renovating the building and more than doubling the seating capacity, including
the addition of outdoor patio seating downstairs and an upstairs deck.
Under New Ownership
On December 28, 2015 Roadhouse Pizza was purchased by longtime mangagers Andy Radke and Alisa Zabel.
Andy started working at RHP while in high school and rejoined full time in 2007. Alisa joined the team in
2010. Long time fans of RHP will find that the pizza and hoagies are the exact same receipes from the 1980's!!
You can come to Roadhouse Pizza and enjoy the same food you had as a kid growing up or attending college in
Ripon albet in a bright, state of the are pizzeria.
Thanks to Ripon Commonwealth Press for some of this content
