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Confession: I'm not a beer drinker. And I don't love pizza. I'm not really into loud places, and I frown upon waiting more than a half hour to be seated in a restaurant.

Turtle Mountain Brewing Co. is my exception.

I can't help it. I never mind waiting for a table in the restaurant's posh new space in Rio Rancho. (Truthfully, I didn't even mind the usually hourlong wait when Turtle Mountain was barely a renovated laundromat a few blocks east on Southern Boulevard. Sure, I loitered on a dirty old couch next to a bathroom door with a few strangers on my lap, but maybe that was part of the experience.)

I always recommend the house brew sampler ($4.50), six 6-ounce servings of some of Turtle Mountain's specialties. This time around was no different, and our table was eager to try new brews.

And, you must know the last thing I want to do is revive a best-pie-in-town debate, but my money will always go to this spot for wood-fired creations.

My pick: the Adam Bomb ($9.84). It's pepperoni, piñon, green chile, sausage and spinach sprinkled beneath a lovely layer of mozzarella. My husband, a pizza fiend, likes the Chimayo ($8.20), which would likely be the choice of anybody who loves Dion's pizza. It's a basic but delicious layering of pepperoni and green chile, all imbued with oregano.

The rest of the pies are served with combinations of meats, artichoke hearts and various peppers. Some, like the White Sands, have a handful of cheeses, including ricotta. Others are distinctly brewery-inspired: Habanero-stout barbecue sauce is the foundation of the Ojo Caliente. (Nearly all entrees are named for New Mexico towns or points of interest. Turtle Mountain takes its moniker from the Tewa name for Sandia Peak.)

The brewery moved up the street and stretched out into new digs earlier this year. It more than doubled its dining space, and it created a much larger area for the beer tanks. The bar is now a swanky marble, and the taps are state of the art. Booths are adorned with slate and squishy teal seats.

The menu grew as well. The old Turtle Mountain — which now is the brewery's "taproom" and features pool tables and pingpong — had pizza, calzones, grinders and a handful of salads on the menu.

The new-and-improved restaurant now has Angus beef burgers and chicken sandwiches ($6.56 to $8.67), pasta dishes ($8.44 to $12.65), a beer-marinated ribeye ($14.99), trout with red-chile butter sauce ($13.59), and a beer-battered cod ($10.99).

What's more, a renovated Web site (www.turtlemountainbrewing.com) now offers beer tips - like, just what exactly separates an IPA from a stout - and a complete menu. The fuller kitchen allows Turtle Mountain to also expand its "Brewmaster's Dinners," which work like wine-pairing events. This month's offering —which took place June 28 — featured a five-course meal paired with five house brews, prepared by brewmaster Mark Matheson.

The menus for the events and the restaurant are created by twentysomething chef Chris Blanshine, a guy who had been creating dressings and sauces with Turtle Mountain's brews at home long before he asked for a job.

I, for one, am grateful the restaurant gave him that job.

Turtle Mountain, my favorite exception, is better for it.