Alessio's offers OK food, family-friendliness

By JENNIFER PAXTON

For most, mentions of Italian food conjure images of romantic, candlelit dinners. A bottle of Chianti, mellifluous sounds of Luciano Pavarotti complement delectable lasagna and sugar-sprinkled cannolis. Aside from Little Italy in Manhattan, these ritzy restaurants are extinct in the suburbs. In Alpharetta, Ga., families get their Italian fix with a balanced blend of taste, price and family-friendliness at their local pizzeria. There may be Chianti involved, but The Eagles reign over Pavarotti, and the pizza pie dominates immaculate fettuccini. Candles, obviously, are out of the question.

My parents, younger brother and I went to Alessio’s Restaurant on a busy Saturday evening. Pizza boxes stacked like skyscrapers, Rat Pack posters and ESPN screens surrounded us. We were seated promptly in a large booth by a young gentleman no older than 15. In fact, most of the staff looked as if they just got their driver’s licenses. But don’t let their youth fool you. The wait staff was surprisingly fast and attentive. The manager was always visible, either assisting cooks or conversing with customers.

The restaurant has ample space with plenty of booths, an arcade in the back for the kiddies, and lots of floor room for the servers to maneuver large pie trays while dodging hyperactive children (having former experience serving at a pizzeria, this is a huge plus). A large bar encircles the open-view kitchen. Alessio’s feels like a really big living room you can’t wait to watch the big game in.

I wouldn’t call Alessio’s an Italian restaurant per se, but a sports bar with Italian undertones and a pizza fetish. It proudly calls itself a “New York pizzeria,” hinting at its Manhattan influence with clever menu titles. There’s the “Village Veggie,” “Manhattan Meat,” and “The Soho” pizzas, and of course “New York cheesecake,” but I always look at that one with a skeptical eye. What cheesecake doesn’t hail from NY these days?

Aside from vast pizza options, Alessio’s pleases the Italian foodie with strombolis, calzones and every pasta imaginable. Otherwise, burgers, salads and buffalo wings satiate the traditional eater. Several draft beers and a lengthy wine list relieve exhausted parents. Whatever you’re in the mood for, Alessio’s probably offers it.

My mother and I both ordered the house Pinot Grigio. Great winos think alike – generously large glasses and a crisp finish after each sip was the perfect way to start our meal. After perusing the gargantuan menu, I settled on the calzone with pepperoni, gorgonzola cheese and onions. My mother ordered a small “Village Veggie,” my father went with the eggplant parmesan and my brother took the American route with a dozen buffalo wings.

My mother said it best in the car on the way home: “That was just one of those meals that you have and then, eh, never think about it again.” It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t life-changing for our taste buds either. My calzone was drowning in mozzarella cheese with a mere four pepperonis clinging to the dough for dear life. It was as if the cook had an undying love affair with cheese he or she just couldn't let go of. The onions were scarcely spread throughout and the gorgonzola was seemingly absent from my order – basically, bread and a whole lot of cheese for $10. The “Village Veggie” was decent and generous with its toppings, especially broccoli. The buffalo wings were buffalo wings, and the eggplant parmesan was sufficient.

Aside from the superb wine, our meals were the equivalent of buying shoes at Payless. You know you’re taking the less elegant route, and you’re technically getting just what you asked for, so you don’t have much room to complain. But you were secretly hoping you’d hit the jackpot. Maybe we can find an affordable, Italian-American establishment with room for kids to frolic and sports scores abound, and it has unbelievable food, we hoped. Predictably, no such luck at Alessio’s, but what it lacks in impressive food it makes up for in satisfactory atmosphere.

Perhaps I’m asking too much to combine family-friendliness with deliciousness, but as long as the kids stay out of the kitchen, Alessio’s should strive to achieve both.

VERDICT: Winos and kids welcome, but don't expect a phenomenal meal.

ALESSIO'S
5354 McGinnis Ferry Rd.
Alpharetta, Ga. 30005
www.alessiosrestaurant.moonfruit.com

Mama Sid's cooks up affordable, delicious pizza

By DREW HALL

Mama Sid’s Pizza on Barnett Shoals is a hidden, little gem on the eastside of Athens just waiting to be found by this generation of broke and hungry college students. An Athens tradition for more than 20 years, it’s easy to see how it’s spanned the test of time. What’s not to like about a $5 pizza buffet for students with a student ID. Granted, it used to be $5 with the drink and now it’s $6 if you get a drink, but it’s hard to beat an all-you-can-eat for that price.

The brick walls inside were lined the entire length of the restaurant with tall wooden booths and red and white checkered tables covered the middle and reminded me of an 80s roller-skating rink from my younger years. The pizza was even better than the carefree memory. Not only is the pizza all you can eat, but you can actually request whatever flavor pizza you want. The hell with Papa John’s $5.99 one-topping large on Tuesdays, it’s all you can eat everyday with whatever pizza you pick at Mama Sid’s.

We were greeted upon entering by a friendly waitress who took our drink order and then the cooks asked what kind of pizza we preferred. Next, it was on to the buffet table where several kinds of pizza waited already including white pizza (pizza made with feta cheese), pepperoni and another flavor with spinach and tomatoes which was also extremely delicious. The pizza at Mama Sid’s isn’t the deep thick crust that I despise but rather a quick thin crust with lots of cheese and just the right amount of sauce.

We ordered buffalo chicken and Mama’s Special, which is just their name for a supreme or all-the-way pizza. The buffalo chicken rivals any I’ve ever eaten anywhere and the surpreme wasn’t too bad as well. If you’re going to enjoy the pizza, don’t forget to ask for some of the homemade ranch dressing to dip it in. It’s far from your everyday Hidden Valley and will have you wondering how you ever enjoyed pizza without it.

I had Diet Coke to drink with mine, as if it made a difference by the end of seven slices of pizza, but also tasted the sweet tea which was good even by Southern standards. But, don’t leave without having the garlic-covered dough balls in the basket on the end of the buffet table, you’ll regret it if you miss out on one of those little balls of heaven.

If you happen to be in Athens on Saturday and not in Sanford Stadium, they also have $3.95 pitchers to go with your $5 pizza. And what is finer in the land than a drunk and full of pizza Georgia fan?

VERDICT: Cheap beers plus pizza equals college kid happiness.

MAMA SID'S
2240 Barnett Shoals Road
Athens, Ga.
(706) 549-6100