Villa Barone

If you have a passion for wonderful, made-to-order Italian food, served in a friendly, cozy setting then you must visit Villa Barone Ristorante & Pizzeria in Collingswood.

A family-owned business, Villa Barone excels at providing delicious authentic cuisine at reasonable prices. They offer a wide selection of pasta, seafood, chicken and veal specialties. In addition, they serve soups, vegetarian dishes, steaks, subs, calzones, stromboli, and pizzas.

Not just any pizza, though. Villa Barone recently installed a wood-fired brick oven. This allows them to create gourmet pizzas, in addition to their traditional pizzas, using an Old World technique.

With so many great items on their menu, my companion and I had a hard time deciding what we wanted to try. As we contemplated the options, our waiter provided us with wonderful rolls which we dipped into a tasty blend of spices.

While a Sinatra CD played softly in the background, we decided to begin our meal with an order of Mussels Marinara ($5), a tasty start to a wonderful meal.

We then shared a brick oven pizza called Pizza Ripiena ($9), a 12-inch stuffed pie with our choice of two toppings. We chose what we thought was an offbeat combination of meatballs and sharp provolone. It turned out to be a delicious mixture of flavors.

Other terrific brick oven pizzas include: Capricciosa - prosciutto, gaeta olives, and fresh mushrooms; Del Mare - crabmeat and shrimp in a marinara sauce; and Cardinale - chicken with red roasted peppers and garlic in a light sauce. There are 14 varieties in all, but since patrons have the opportunity of adding a range of toppings, the possibilities are virtually endless.

In addition to our great pizza, my companion and I also chose to split Chicken Saltiboccia ($11), a breast of chicken topped with spinach, prosciutto, and mozzarella in a light brown sauce. We both raved about how great it tasted. Villa Barone provides takeout and local delivery. Catering services are also available both on and off the premises.

755 Haddon Ave. Collingswood 858-2999

Hours Mon. - Thurs.:11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fri. & Sat.:11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sun.: noon to 10 p.m.

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Author: Denise Currie