Engine 8 Urban Winery — Restaurant in Sparks

The high rating of this place & a sign outside that said best pizza in Reno, really got my hopes up.

Waited 25 minutes for our caprese appetizer. Luckily it was very tasty and made me look forward to the quality of the pizza. I felt way less irritated waiting so long for toasted bread with tomatoes and cheese on top when there were only six other customers the whole time we were there. I think good food takes time.

We then waited another 20 minutes until our artisan and our combo pizzas came out. The artist and pizza's bottom was burned on the edges. The combo pizzas crust was not fully cooked through the center because of the excessive amount of toppings they put on the pizza. I understand a combo comes with a lot of toppings but it was too much. For example, every bite I would get two slices of black olive. The black olive became so overpowering I could not finish the pizza.

But the biggest insult to injury was when I ordered a side of ranch for $3, and after getting heckled for it by the waiter, was given 5 tbsp of what I have provided a photo of: cheap processed paste-y gross ranch you buy in bulk from the restaurant supply. For $3 for such a small side the ranch should have been in-house. I mean heck, guacamole at Chipotle is cheaper than that at $2.65 and it is at least made fresh daily.

I will say of the wines that we had were very good. We will likely stop by to pick up a few bottles but never sit...

Super disappointed with the customer service! Both times I've visited my brother in Sparks, we have come to Engine 8 for dinner. It's one of his favorite places to spend his money. Personally, I have a different opinion and am pretty unimpressed. First time, I ordered a flight of wines to try a few different options before deciding on which bottle(s) to order, and I was told that they were too busy to serve me a flight. The waitress was annoyed as well as unkind about it. This last time I attended with a large group. It was a brisk evening (58° out to be exact) and my son and I were not dressed for a night on the patio without heaters. I asked to sit inside and they didn't want to open up the empty backroom to let us, but offered us a table that only sat part of the group inside... Considering we ordered five expensive pizzas, six spendy beverages, plus with my brother being a member - spending literally thousands of dollars to be a member of the wine club, entertaining friends and family and just supporting this small business, I feel that they could definitely be more accommodating. I thought it was quite unreasonable to not allow us to have a table large enough even though there was one available, the owner Wendy, chose to have us seated outside. The pizza is great but don't expect super awesome service and hopefully it's not too busy for you to order a...

This is a terrific , no rather - a fabulous - new addition to the Sparks area. Absolutely a terrific atmosphere inside and as nice of an outside patio arrangement as any wine related place in the area. - even outside the area. The music on Saturday nights - especially when outdoors on the expansive patio - has added another new level of greatness. The food options are exceptional especially the pizza choices ( the newly added Hawaiian Express is amazing ) and are as good as any local pizza parlor! The wine is limited to their own wine making abilities but even these various varietal options are getting better. The Malbec is my personal favorite. I have no skin in the game here ( although I wish I did , this place is going to be hugely successful ) just a love of wine and wine related social activity thus the reason for me taking the time to express my opinion here. My only worry is that it is getting so popular that reservations in advance are almost a requirement now just to make sure a table is available : )) but I'm sure that is welcome news for ownership. Finally , the people who run Engine 8 Urban Winery ( are so down to earth and genuinely good people ) and their staff are easy going , caring and always make you feel like part of their family. It's my go to place at least once a week now when I'm not...