American River Pizza & Grill

We love this place and great attitudes. They were out of an ingredient for our sandwich and told we could choose something different or wait for the owner, who just left, to return for the store. We were happy to wait which really not that long. awesome!

I've lived down the road in Cool for about a week now so it was my first time getting out and really just getting a pizza to enjoy. I worked at Round Table in the bay area (a good one) for 5 years and LOVE pizza. This was the BEST PIZZA IVE HAD IN MY 29 YEARS OF LIFE. Perfectly done on top, perfectly crispy on the bottom just absolutely perfect. I had half of a small shoved in my face before I got home 3 miles down the road because I could not stop myself. If I can upload pictures, I will. This pizza was so good it was funny. I have to add that the staff was very nice, it was a great environment and thought I had said take out I almost changed it to dine in just because it was a nice atmosphere. This place rocks, even their salad bar is good!

Was there last night & had the best veg pizza!!! Lots of goodies on top… not too much sauce!!!

The Food and the Service are always top notch. We eat here regularly. We have tried just about everything on the menu. Nothing disappoints. The burgers and ribs are awesome. The specials like the butternut squash ravioli are spectacular. There is something for everyone. Pizza, sandwiches, pasta, bbq, and so much more. The salad bar is always so fresh and well stocked, I can't help but get a salad bar added to my entree everytime. My kids love going there, they not only enjoy all their choices in food they really look forward to the game room. Lori and Ray the owners run a great crew of people, the service staff works very hard and do an excellent job. I personally want to say Thank you to everyone who works and has worked at the American River Pizza Grill over the past couple of years, it helped make our decision to move to this area much easier. We Love This Restaurant and This Town.

Grateful to have this spot in Cool. Everything they prepare is done so with great effort, care and love. And everything on the menu is delicious... don't even get me started on the specials! Doesn't matter what the special is, when you order it, you're going to be blown away that something so good came from a place so obscure. Staff makes you feel like family. Top notch local gem. Oh, and all the pastries and deserts are made fresh by a gal in town apparently - you don't know the meaning of mouth-watering until you try them!

I dont even like pizza! But, there are few places to eat up here. This place is one of those little gems. Very friendly, great service! Pleasant atmosphere. The Pizza was delicious and the salad bar was tasty , well stocked and clean!!! Outside table area is adorable nice new tables with umbrellas garden setting. I was impressed!!!!

Their food is consistently good...be it a burger, salad, pizza, pasta, sandwich.. I could go on!!! The owners are there..hands on friendly faces. They have done an amazing job dealing with our current situation, Covid. Cool doesn't have a lot of dining options...I'm thrilled we have them!!!

Took our order over the phone. Made it perfect to order. Picked it up for mom and we all really enjoyed it! We had a vegetarian with no cheese and it was delicious! Thin crust was perfect.

I love how they deliver good old-fashioned pizza and beer, and make great burgers..

Friendly & attentive staff. Plenty of seating inside and outside. Clean dining room & restrooms. Parking lot onsite. Good food.

Great brews and good food. Got the tritip sandwich and it was bomb! Visited this place during a hike in Auburn

We had a great time celebrating a family birthday. The pizza was awesome.

Great service! Go for the BBQ chicken! Thank you for a delicious lunch. 😋

Ed Petty

I love how they deliver good old-fashioned pizza and beer, and make great burgers..

Ray Bouknight

Friendly & attentive staff. Plenty of seating inside and outside. Clean dining room & restrooms. Parking lot onsite. Good food.

Chris Whipple

Great brews and good food. Got the tritip sandwich and it was bomb! Visited this place during a hike in Auburn

Cindy Greer

We had a great time celebrating a family birthday. The pizza was awesome.

Patrick Murphy

Great service! Go for the BBQ chicken! Thank you for a delicious lunch. 😋

Family friendly and the owners are awesome! Ray behind the scenes pays attention to customer service. Compare what you pay at a drive-thru at Jack in The box or something and you get handcrafted homemade food and a beer and you get to watch the game on TV. No better atmosphere than to be there in a family-friendly place!

Great place, family vibes, super welcoming, great pizza, LOVE the inferno burger, the ranch is delish, hard to choose between their regular or sweet potato fries. Menu is huge, I'm sure there's something you'll love. If you're reading my review, just pop in, you won't regret it. (Family of 4 + Grandma)

Great pizza! The owners are awesome! My friend ordered the BBQ ribs and she thought they were great as well. Highly recommended. 😁

A huge thank you for taking care of all 25 of us at our SAR event this weekend. Your hospitality was awesome and the pizza was fantastic.

Awesome pizza and great pitcher of beer! Fast and friendly service.

Our bookclub gathered about 1PM and found the noon rush over. The service was friendly and at just the right pace. Our food came quickly but we didn't feel rushed. The people who had the salad bar said there was lots to choose from for a satisfying meal. People who had sandwiches said they were really special.

The Chicken Pesto Ravioli was rich, delicious, and very filling. Excellent service. Pizza is always good.

We had a birthday celebration there with about 15 adults and 5 kids. Very kid friendly.. we sat outside. Lots of parking. Pizza was great! Kids loved getting 2 pokemon cards for 50 cents. The staff was great, patient, kind and helpful. Definitely recommend them.

Bob Dobolina

Awesome pizza and great pitcher of beer! Fast and friendly service.

Ed Petty

Family friendly and the owners are awesome! Ray behind the scenes pays attention to customer service. Compare what you pay at a drive-thru at Jack in The box or something and you get handcrafted homemade food and a beer and you get to watch the game on TV. No better atmosphere than to be there in a family-friendly place!

Heather Nadine Watson

Great place, family vibes, super welcoming, great pizza, LOVE the inferno burger, the ranch is delish, hard to choose between their regular or sweet potato fries. Menu is huge, I'm sure there's something you'll love. If you're reading my review, just pop in, you won't regret it. (Family of 4 + Grandma)

Michael Berrey (Mike)

Great pizza! The owners are awesome! My friend ordered the BBQ ribs and she thought they were great as well. Highly recommended. 😁

Ray Elliott

The Chicken Pesto Ravioli was rich, delicious, and very filling. Excellent service. Pizza is always good.

Mary Myers

Our bookclub gathered about 1PM and found the noon rush over. The service was friendly and at just the right pace. Our food came quickly but we didn't feel rushed. The people who had the salad bar said there was lots to choose from for a satisfying meal. People who had sandwiches said they were really special.

Danielle

We had a birthday celebration there with about 15 adults and 5 kids. Very kid friendly.. we sat outside. Lots of parking. Pizza was great! Kids loved getting 2 pokemon cards for 50 cents. The staff was great, patient, kind and helpful. Definitely recommend them.

The Asian Chicken Salad was quite good; the salad greens were super fresh and crisp. Great place for lunch after a morning on the nearby hiking and riding trails.

Nice local pizza spot with a great salad bar, outside seating and friendly ambiance. I order the pizza with easy sauce and they have great specials for salad/personal pizzas. I only didn’t give 5 stars because trip before last I was given a pretty burnt sausage pizza for takeout, one other time for lunch. Guess I should just speak up. Slightly inconsistent but still definitely delicious and nice staff. Also very clean. 👍 🍕

Friendly staff, good pizza. Great for families. The homemade cookies are the best.. I didn't give it a 5 because no delivery, and pizza doesn't hold up to next day reheat..

Used my points from Holiday Market to get free pizza coupons, chose a couple for here and the rest for round table pizza, but I'm kicking myself for not getting all of them for American River pizza. We always get the pepperoni and it is just hand's down better than round table, which I didn't think was possible with any pizza, anywhere. Salad bar is also great and also there's always some kind of yummy dessert in the cooler I'm pretty sure is made by someone local, staff is nice and helpful, cute little girl runs the register and friendly lady who I think is the manager comes by to check on us, also beer is good, only place I've ever ordered a pitcher. Also strong wifi, I used theirs when my phone service was crapped out, thumbs up

Pizza*Burgers*Pasta*Salads*Sandwiches*Homemade Desserts*Beer* What more could you want? The pizza is delicious. It arrived hot, cheesy and full of Italian flavor. The crust to topping ratio was perfect. There was plenty of seating inside and outside on the patio. The cashier was helpful and recommended several options. She did look tired, but she was friendly and accommodating. The staff is organized and keeps the restaurant clean. I would recommend the restaurant put screens over the openings on the back patio. The flies were horrific. If you plan to celebrate an event, I would recommend hosting it on the front patio. It was cooler and there weren't as many flies. IG: SACRAMENTOHONEY

Tried the sandwiches they were good 🙂 too. Nice atmosphere, next time ill try thier pizza.

Sacramento Honey

Pizza*Burgers*Pasta*Salads*Sandwiches*Homemade Desserts*Beer* What more could you want? The pizza is delicious. It arrived hot, cheesy and full of Italian flavor. The crust to topping ratio was perfect. There was plenty of seating inside and outside on the patio. The cashier was helpful and recommended several options. She did look tired, but she was friendly and accommodating. The staff is organized and keeps the restaurant clean. I would recommend the restaurant put screens over the openings on the back patio. The flies were horrific. If you plan to celebrate an event, I would recommend hosting it on the front patio. It was cooler and there weren't as many flies. IG: SACRAMENTOHONEY

Darrell Adams

Tried the sandwiches they were good 🙂 too. Nice atmosphere, next time ill try thier pizza.

We usually eat here when in the area hiking. The burgers have been very tasty and are the main draw for us. We ate here yesterday (12/3/25) and ordered two American burgers and one drink, which came out to about $40! I think they switched over to prepackaged burger patties like you'd find at Costco or at a supermarket, which is reflected in the taste of the burger. Not good and definitely not $40 worth. Will try one more time before moving on.

First, there is outdoor seating, which is my main criteria for choosing a restaurant during this pandemic. The patio area is quite nice. The food is really good. I had a calamari appetizer, which was delicious. I had never seen calamari sticks before, so at first I thought they accidentally gave me cheese sticks, but nope - tasty tasty calamari. I also ordered a cheeseburger, and it was very good. The unsweetened ice tea was a little weak, but still good. I also sampled the jalapeno poppers my partner ordered, and they were quite good. She also enjoyed the chicken strips. I will definitely eat here again. We've also ordered takeout, which has been a mostly good experience. Only once did we have an issue with getting our meal in a timely manner, but they were also busier than usual that evening.

Ed

We usually eat here when in the area hiking. The burgers have been very tasty and are the main draw for us. We ate here yesterday (12/3/25) and ordered two American burgers and one drink, which came out to about $40! I think they switched over to prepackaged burger patties like you'd find at Costco or at a supermarket, which is reflected in the taste of the burger. Not good and definitely not $40 worth. Will try one more time before moving on.

Jill Connaway

First, there is outdoor seating, which is my main criteria for choosing a restaurant during this pandemic. The patio area is quite nice. The food is really good. I had a calamari appetizer, which was delicious. I had never seen calamari sticks before, so at first I thought they accidentally gave me cheese sticks, but nope - tasty tasty calamari. I also ordered a cheeseburger, and it was very good. The unsweetened ice tea was a little weak, but still good. I also sampled the jalapeno poppers my partner ordered, and they were quite good. She also enjoyed the chicken strips. I will definitely eat here again. We've also ordered takeout, which has been a mostly good experience. Only once did we have an issue with getting our meal in a timely manner, but they were also busier than usual that evening.

When we first moved here eight years ago they were outstanding. The quality of their pizza has been getting lower and lower over the last three years. I decided to try them one last time because I truly want to support local businesses. Frozen pizza would have been better. The pizza was cold, the sauce bland and overly sweet, and the crust is flavorless and dry. Many of their other dishes are quite good but the pizza is pathetic.

The food was just fine and the service was okay. Seemed disorganized. They were not busy when we got there but the started out by warning us they were busy and a bit slow. They were only a bit slow. Had the pastrami and there was way too mustard on it. The American burger was pretty good, but very sweet. Fiers were fine. The place is a der and could use a little updating. You can sit down and be served or order at the counter.

Michael St. Denis

The food was just fine and the service was okay. Seemed disorganized. They were not busy when we got there but the started out by warning us they were busy and a bit slow. They were only a bit slow. Had the pastrami and there was way too mustard on it. The American burger was pretty good, but very sweet. Fiers were fine. The place is a der and could use a little updating. You can sit down and be served or order at the counter.

Pizza and wings tasted like they were from Tyson. Waiter could care less. Save your money and have a peanut butter sandwich. It will be yummy in comparison.

The pizza is bad and way overpriced. We've lived in Cool for 17+ years and noticed it went downhill quite awhile ago. Every few months or so we give it another go hoping they've improved, it used to be good years ago, when the owners once cared. Tonight we paid $37 for 1 extra large pizza that was just half pepperoni and Canadian bacon/ pineapple. They charged it as a specialty pizza. Crust and sauce was gross. Told it'd be 30 minutes but pizza tasted like it had been sitting a long time. Lesson learned, will stop giving all these chances and wasting our $. Many frozen pizzas are better.

We ordered a large pizza with 4 toppings at a cost of over $33. The menu on the website is obviously wrong as it states a one topping large pizza starts at $17.75 when in reality it starts over $23. The topping were incredibly sparse and couldn't even find one of the toppings. And it was luke warm when I picked it up. Would not recommend a pizza from here ever.

I’ve been eating at this establishment for years. I have always enjoyed my experience and felt comfortable recommending this restaurant to other people. My opinion has now changed, after three consecutive meals that compared better to chucky cheese, I think I’m done forever. If you want the food to taste good either drink more beer or get a serious case of the munchies. The crust is horrible and the meat lovers is more like the 80’s commercial where’s the beef.

Bought pizza and it was the worst ever. My grandson hated it also.Tasted awful and it was raw. Owners aren't pleasant like they dont want to be there. So got a medium raw pizza for $26 which is absurd. Never go there again.

Made a takeout order for a medium firehouse pizza, ran me $25.73. My pizza was gummy, the dough was nearly cooked and the whole bottom was covered in grease. The pizza is super moist and drips of water when I pick it up. I’ve come here many times over the past 4 years and I hate to say the truth; the quality has dropped each visit. I don’t want your pizza anymore. The passion fell off a long time ago. Instead of investing in equipment to collect tips maybe focus on the product that makes your image.

We were looking for a "good" hamburger so we went here, judging from the reviews. We noticed the burger was 1/3 pound so we were happy to order one, with medium cooking instructions. We also wanted a salad, so since the salad bar was over $11, we decided to order a small caesar salad for $4,25. OMG, when the good came, it was unbelievable. The hamburger was about the size of a children's sandwich, with a bun that overtook the plate. The hamburger was cooked more than well done. The salad was also terrible. There was wilted lettuce with a dressing that my friend was choking on. The bed of lettuce was on top of a bed of croutons. The French fries were great. To say the least, we will not go back there. We would be better off going to McDonald's. And the bill was $30

I placed an order for French fries to go. I got about 14 fries for $6.75. No wonder I don't go there anymore. Highway robbery. The owner called me to offer more fries. That was nice.

Susie Vanderlinden

I placed an order for French fries to go. I got about 14 fries for $6.75. No wonder I don't go there anymore. Highway robbery. The owner called me to offer more fries. That was nice.

Ive lived in cool all my life and this place used to be phenomenal!!! I just went there for the first time since Covid.... the food nearly doubled in price, with much smaller proportions their Tyler Tri tip used to actually be a thick sandwich now it looks and tastes like something you'd get at Subway but more than twice as expensive. Thoroughly disappointed and I genuinely considered returning the sandwich for a refund. Would not recommend!!!! Expensive food with small proportions and it all tastes like it was pre frozen especially their fries! Straight up tasted like the standard fries you buy at tue store. Officially boycotting as of now

Chris Moore

Ive lived in cool all my life and this place used to be phenomenal!!! I just went there for the first time since Covid.... the food nearly doubled in price, with much smaller proportions their Tyler Tri tip used to actually be a thick sandwich now it looks and tastes like something you'd get at Subway but more than twice as expensive. Thoroughly disappointed and I genuinely considered returning the sandwich for a refund. Would not recommend!!!! Expensive food with small proportions and it all tastes like it was pre frozen especially their fries! Straight up tasted like the standard fries you buy at tue store. Officially boycotting as of now

Isaiah Grandon

Made a takeout order for a medium firehouse pizza, ran me $25.73. My pizza was gummy, the dough was nearly cooked and the whole bottom was covered in grease. The pizza is super moist and drips of water when I pick it up. I’ve come here many times over the past 4 years and I hate to say the truth; the quality has dropped each visit. I don’t want your pizza anymore. The passion fell off a long time ago. Instead of investing in equipment to collect tips maybe focus on the product that makes your image.