Features

Food For Thought – Fort Lauderdale Pizza & Pasta

April 24, 2013

Fort Lauderdale Pizza and Pasta has been a neighborhood mainstay for many, many years. With comfy booths and tables and a friendly atmosphere, this is a great place to relax and enjoy your favorite Italian favorites.

J and I have eaten dinner at and ordered pizza from Fort Lauderdale Pizza and Pasta quite a few times so we were not strangers to their menu. One of the things I’ve always found appealing about the establishment is that it reminds me of a family pizza parlor like you would find in my hometown of Philadelphia.

The menu offers a large variety of Italian faves. If you are in the area during the day between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., you can try one of their lunch specials, which run between $7 and $11 and include a cup of soup or salad and garlic rolls.

I haven’t been able to come for lunch, but in the past, I’ve come for their dinner specials, which are served starting at 4 p.m. These specials start at $13.50 and go up to $16.50 and include soup, salad, dessert and coffee; some of the specials include a side of pasta. These are great deals and in the past I have taken advantage of them. I’ve had their tasty Chicken Francese a few times. J, who is not a pasta lover, has been a fan of their pepperoni pizza.

For this visit, we allowed our server Lisa to guide us with recommendations.

We started with their buttery garlic rolls and a cup of Pasta Fagioli ($3 a cup, $5 a bowl), which was bursting with cannellini beans and had a delicate broth. We then split an order of traditional Antipasto ($8) which featured Genoa salami, ham, lettuce, tomatoes, green olives, pepperoncini, pimentos, imported Provolone, and onions and was tossed in tangy dressing.

Next, Lisa brought is a piece of Chicken Parmigiana ($12.95, $15 on the special) and a piece of Eggplant Parmigiana ($11.95 regular, $14 on the special) on a plate so that we could get a taste of those two popular dishes, with a side of spaghetti. The eggplant was sliced thin and the breading, cheese and sauce had good flavor. The chicken was extremely juicy and tender and was perhaps the best Chicken Parm I have ever had.

J and I also split a plain pizza (12-inch small $9.50, 14-inch plain $11 and 16-inch large $13). There were many specialty pizzas to choose from, including a Hawaiian, Margarita, Buffalo Chicken, a Brick Oven Pizza, etc. We decided to go for the classic plain pie, which is the often the best way to gauge the quality of any pizza shop. And they did not let us down. When the pie came out, steamy and delicious, we were so excited to dig in. It was cooked perfectly with the right ratio of delicious sauce and cheese (just enough sauce and not too much cheese – quite important!), all on top of a golden crispy crust.

We ended our dinner with a slice of Ricotta Cheesecake, which was light as a cloud with a brulee-like top and a traditional Cannoli, filled with a creamy marcarpone center.