Pizza Campania by Lily Spicher

As we drive to Pizza Campania the anticipation of good food wells up inside me. When we walk in the door a wave of delicious smells washes over us and soon we are engulfed in a warm fuzzy feeling. I smell sweet cheesy pasta and warm mouth watering meats that are in the delicious entrees.

We were seated quickly, in part because we had reservations, and were brought to a well maintained table. Clean and not too cluttered with items. There were salt and pepper shakers, two menus and shining silverware laid on our napkins.                                                                                                       
As I assess the foods on the menu I find many choices with noodles and other pastas. We look for an appetizer to start the meal. We decide on the Arancini di Riso, a large ball of risotto which is a very wonderfully flavored type of pasta. The ball is filled with pasta and salami and is encrusted with cooked risotto. The pasta appetizers were surrounded in marinara sauce and served on an almost glowing white plate.

After we are served, we order our main meals. I ordered the chicken piccata and my dad orders the Genoa pizza. We are given glasses of water and asked if we would like another drink; we politely decline. As the appetizer is served my tummy rumbles ferociously  and we dig in. It is scrumptious and I eat every bite of my side of the dish. There is time to digest the appetizer before our entrees are delivered to our table.

When they arrived my stomach was very pleased it was there and they were plated quit artistically too. The Chicken Piccata is a plate of cheese sauce and parmesan cheese covered noodles, overlapped by lemon juice and capper covered breaded chicken. My dad’s pizza, was a soft crust covered with green alfredo sauce, pineapple, olives, chicken, lettuce and topped with cheese and tomatoes. Both were very delicious and prepared quite professionally. We were not able to get dessert or finish our meals for we were too stuffed by the wonderfully whimsical, mouth-wateringly delicious food.

The waiters were relatively fast, considering the amount of people there, and were really kind. They answered any of the questions we had about the food and weren't too pushy and in our faces. They let us take our time to eat and digest before asking if we wanted anything else.

The restaurant was very clean and rather home-like and it almost felt as if you were being invited in by the building itself. The ceilings were high, which makes sense given that it was once an old grain elevator, this allowed the room to be open and not echo too much. I do have some recommendations for them that may help their restaurant. First, I would change the chairs because they were rock solid and by the time the meal was over my legs felt sore from sitting in them. Also the lighting was a bit too dim for the atmosphere, so I would brighten the room.

After we got the bill and left for home, I considered how many stars I would rate this restaurant and I have decided to give it four and a half stars, because of the kindness and efficiency of the waiters, the home-comfort feel of the restaurant and how well the food was prepared.

Overall, I had a good experience and will be coming back for more.