Editor Pick
Authentic Italian Food, Family Atmosphere
- November 20, 2008
- Rated 5 of 5 by
Green Dragon from Gainvesville, Florida
Pomodoro's is run by Paulie, a local restauranteur who owns 3 or 4 other local Italian places of various price levels and themes. This is the family themed one, but not just a pizza joint. The head chef is Marco, born and raised in Naples (Italy, not Florida!), and it shows in the food.
The restaurant itself is fairly standard looking, with booths and tables, as well as a covered outdoor patio area, with side walls for rain if needed. The walls are covered with pleasant murals depicting scenes from Italian villages or seaside spots. Paulie is often on hand to greet the customers in the evenings or at lunch, his accent is still strong.
Then comes the food. While I am no gourmet, my husband has a very picky palate, especially when it comes to Italian food, and we go here several times a month. The pizzas are wonderful, piled high with fresh ingredients. The ribeye is succulent, marinated in a marinara with peppers and onions. The pasta dishes (both Italian and American/Italian) are always plentiful and tasty. They have a fantastic steak salad, great calamari (with tentacles), and their cioppino (shellfish in a tomato based soup) is mouth-watering. I'm hungry just thinking about it!
They have a wine list, but as I am not a wine drinker I can't comment on its quality. However, their sangria is quite tasty, and a bit on the strong side. Once, when we were chatting with Marco about his mother's homemade Limoncello, he went to the liquor store next door and bought a bottle of Nocello for us to try. It's a walnut liqueur, warm and buttery, and after trying it we went and bought a bottle ourselves. Yum!
And then there are the desserts.
Italian wedding cake, chocolate and vanilla cheesecake, tiramisu, cannoli, flan, they are all delicious.
Service is good quality for the most part. The few times we've had a problem, we've spoken to Paulie and he takes care of it.
So come down to Pomodoro's, which is Italian for tomato - 'the apple of love'.
From journal Gainesville, Florida - the obligatory homeplace journal