MARANA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Paul Reyes, founder of the pizza spot Ciao Down, will soon be opening a new restaurant and serving his food in the neighborhood he says helped shape him into who he is today.
Ciao Down Kitchen will be located at 6781 N Thornydale Rd. #261, the former location of Monsoon’s Tap and Grill.
Reyes says he grew up passing by the building every day.
“I am born and raised here in Tucson, in particular on the Northwest side of town,” he said. “So when the opportunity became available up there, I instantly knew that we would be able to bring our culinary experiences to the Northwest side of town where I grew up, serving the community that I grew up with.”
His new restaurant comes at a time when some Marana residents and council members on the Marana Town Council have expressed wanting to see more sit-down restaurants in the town.
Before starting his own business, Reyes worked in the restaurant industry for numerous years, including stints at Fox Restaurant Concepts and Ritz-Carlton.
In 2015, he started Ciao Down. First as a food truck, then opening a brick-and-mortar location at 3230 N. Dodge Blvd. in 2022.
“Every single day I come into work, I am surprised at where we are at,” Reyes said.
At the new location, you’ll find the artisanal pizza you’re used to getting from their food truck and location on Dodge.
“What we’re going for is that nostalgia of the pizza you grew up with, with a more elevated flavor,” Reyes explained.
However, hours will be expanded at the new location. They will be serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert.
“So you can ciao down with us anytime, day or night,” Reyes said.
While this location may be new, Reyes is not new to serving the Marana community. He says their food truck has been at numerous events in Marana over the years.
“The Marana community has really given us a lot back in the last 10 years and we really just want to bring a whole new culinary experience to them for supporting us over all these years,” Reyes said.
In addition to the expansion to Marana, the location near Dodge and Fort Lowell is currently undergoing an expansion of its own.
“When we built this space we originally were expecting to do somewhere between 70 and 100 covers a night,” Reyes said. “We just broke a record where we made 323 pizzas in an evening. We instantly knew that we needed to expand, we needed to have more space to take care of dough production, take care of prep for the day, somewhere to just store boxes.”
Reyes’ business has now expanded to the space next door. While the new space will help in meeting the demand for the pizza, Reyes will also be opening a pastry and gelato shop in the new space. The new dessert business, Treat, is expected to open in the next two weeks.
Ciao Down Kitchen is expected to open late summer.
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Madison Thomas joined KGUN 9 in July of 2023 as a multimedia journalist. She graduated from Arizona State University in May of 2023 with a degree in journalism and mass communication. She has lived in Arizona her entire life and grew up in Douglas. Madison is thrilled to share the stories from the community she grew up in. Share your story ideas and important issues with Madison by emailing madison.thomas@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
