Pondaseta Pizza Company — Local services in Canyon

Go to the original Pondaseta in Amaraillo, not this one.

The nice folks at the Amarillo spot mentioned Pondaseta's second location in Canyon and that they had a handful of exclusive-to-Canyon brews worth trying.

Something's off here. Beer and food are good. Vibe is fresh and new. Service was overwhelmingly poor and not customer-centered.

First, boy there's nothing like a brewery and restaurant immediately next to an active freight rail line. Location: bad. Next, it's a sprawling campus with a brewery and a restaurant. Don't be fooled by all the glass in front of The Brewery. That's not where the taproom is. It's the door labeled 'Pizza Company,' obviously.

A rare brewery or brewpub like this that is open on a Monday is always a nice find. So, there's a positive. They're open Mondays. If that's your only criteria, head on over!

After navigating the entrance, grabbed a bar stool, and asked the Canyon bartender which drafts were exclusive. 'They're all the same, man.' But, they aren't. A small handful were definitely unique. Mentioned that to the less-than-knowledgeable barkeep. 'Fine. So get those then,' he said. Only, that didn't work. Tried building a flight out of the only-in-Canyon beers, but two of the taps were kicked. Ugh. Eventually a flight came. It wasn't labeled in any way. Had to ask the bartender several times which ones were which.

Figuring since this place was labeled a Pizza Company, they might have food. Had to ask for a menu though, as Mr. Bartender never offered one or even asked if it was going to be just drinks, or food, too.

One level of good service came after finishing the first beer in the flight. Bartender man engaged in a conversation and asked how the beer was! Hooray! Put in a pretzel bites order while that guy was being so attentive. 20 minutes later, on the last beer of the flight, no pretzel bites. He came over, said it was shift change, asked if he should put in any food orders, and that he'd be closing the tab. 'You got that pretzel bite order in, right?' He says, 'Oh yeah, I got you. Just seeing if there's anything else you want.' (Pretty sure that was when the pretzel order went in, not 20 minutes earlier when it was asked for).

Food came. Delivered by someone new. No napkins delivered along with it. Had to wave someone down to get one. 'Ah, sorry about the no silver. I got all my staff doing something in the kitchen.' (Is that where you hide the customers?)

Meanwhile, original bartender dude's shift was done. Someone else was clearly put on bar duty, but who knows what she was up to. Something needed done in the walk-in fridge behind the bar. And while she walked in and out and in and out and in and out of that fridge, the empty beer flight glasses on the bar just stayed that way. Nobody picked them up. Nobody offered new pours of anything else.

Not sure what their priorities are at this place, but at 4pm on a Monday, it was basically empty, and being what felt like the only customer in the joint, customer-first service did not seem like an interest of theirs....

When I first heard in Summer 2023 that Pondaseta Brewing from Amarillo was going to open a Canyon location, I was giddy with excitement. It took about 21 months for it all to come to fruition, but it was worth the wait. The March 2025 opening came just as it started warming up, and a cold beer the perfect refreshment.

Located in the historic 1925 railroad depot, Pondaseta has done an amazing job transforming what had effectively been a municipal storage building into a taproom and kitchen. A separate 5000-square-foot brewhouse was erected adjacently. With a seating capacity of about 200, the depot—which has a perfect twin in Panhandle Texas—can handle large crowds. Two separate seating and bar areas provide spacious digs for eating and imbibing. The cool people all hang out on the west end, though. A patio is under construction that will allow for outdoor seating.

While the Amarillo location has a limited menu out of their own food trailer, over in Canyon pizza is the specialty and the name reflects that emphasis, although there are burgers and other sandos, along with fish and chips. I have followed the BYO (build your own) model several times, each on different from the others. I am thankful that in addition to regular crust and cheese, they also offer a cauliflower crust and vegan cheese.

The beer is top shelf, and always has been since they first opened in Fall 2018. Kaleb and Trever do not know how to brew a bad beer, and, most importantly, they can brew across the spectrum, from IPAs and Pale Ales to bocks, sours, stouts, porters, lagers, and more. Whatever your style, they’ll have something for you. Between their core beers, seasonals, and limited run one-offs, the menu board is always changing.

While I will still visit the Amarillo location (Monday Night Trivia, you know), I will definitely be hanging out at the depot. This is everything that Canyon needed, and more. Well done, guys. This place rocks, and if you’re an out-of-towner reading this, Pondaseta is the perfect place to grab a meal after you have spent the day hiking down...

Our first time here. Never went to the Amarillo one because they advertised kombucha but actually didn't carry it and the guy who answered the phone at that one didn't seem to like his job nor answering the phone so I just didn't make the time to try it out after that. I don't drink beer anymore, and this one has no liquor bar so top shelf margaritas weren't an option. Batter for fish & chips need improving, pickle chips need to be fried longer. Both were a bit oily and batter had an off flavor (like bubbly pancake batter?) that our girls took off, but the cod underneath was very good. I grew up eating pacific coast beer-battered fish & chips with malt vinegar, so maybe y'all try a different recipe and go with grassfed beef tallow for frying and do hand cut fries? If you do, I'd come back for it. Hard to find good fish & chips anywhere around here. Onions on burger were quite good, but it wasn't cooked medium (was not pink at all) that we ordered, which isn't a rare occurrence. Beer cheese was pretty good flavor, texture a little like Velveeta though. Server was attentive and very kind. Bummed the dining area, where we were placed, had no view of the trains. My husband is a RR employee with BNSF, so we were hoping to have a view. Maybe the view is reserved for the bar flies? I think the prices were high for what we received, which seemed to be California $ levels. $65+ plus tip and my husband and i split a burger, kids split fish & chips, pickle & pretzel appetizers, one lemonade, 3 waters. The wikistix were cute and one of our twins had a ball with hers! Never too old. Good attempt overall, not sure when they opened but maybe things will...