Nonna's Pizzeria & Wine Bar

What does one do on an unusually cold late March evening? Travel down the street to the neighborhood pizzeria. This space is small, but cozy. Perfect for a sleety night.

I started off with a glass of imported Italian, organic red, valpentena corvina. For only $7.00, this wine is packed full of flavor, without being too dry or tasting cheap.

The chicken, pesto (made in house with pine nuts), arugula, mozzarella piadini was a hit, and would make my grandmother proud. (A piadini is wood dried bread pressed with fillings; think of it as a cousin to the panini.)
Nonna serves her piadinis with mixed greens and a chianti vinaigrette that is oh so delicious. For $8.00, the entire entree was rather large portion of food.

My table mates opted to order different wood fired pizzas. When they arrived, it appeared both pizzas were overloaded with grease. While this is somewhat expected with wood fired foods in general, it seemed a bit excessive, and they both blotted their pizzas with napkins before taking the first bite.

For dessert, the menu boasted local gelato for $5.00. Unfortunately, this chocolate chip treat was definitely NOT the traditional Italian gelato. It had the consistency of "American" ice cream. When we inquired as to where the "gelato" hailed, the server advised he was unaware. He further explained that almost all the foods served are made in house, but the gelato is not one of them.
This said, without mention, he simply removed the dessert from the bill. Impressive.

I definitely will be back for another round of the piadini, and a delicious glass of red wine to accompany it.

Yay for more restaurants in Sylvan Park!  This place is a great addition.  It is right next door to Cafe Nonna (the more upscale Italian cuisine restaurant run by the same owners) but is a bit more casual and focuses on pizza.  The service is very friendly, the atmosphere is laid back (we brought our 2-year-old) and the food is delicious.  We had the Tuscan BBQ Chicken Pizza and the Goomba Pizza (with pepperoni and sausage) and though both were good, the Tuscan BBQ was AMAZING.  We also had a flatbread with dipping sauce appetizer that was very good.  Happy to recomend this place and happy to make many a trip back.

P.S. This is my new thing -- but yay for not having a TV in the restaurant!  Makes for a more relaxing atmosphere.

The space was nice - could get a little noisy but the music was good.  Parking is a problem unless you live in walking distance.  Salsa was good but the italian ham/cheese appetizer not so much - too salty and a bizarre texture.  Nice wine list though.