Bites Nearby: Get Some Fantastic Italian Food at Buca di Beppo

Editor's Note: This Bites Nearby is a restaurant review written for the Strongsville Patch by Gerry Shamray.

For awhile, was a Christmas Eve tradition for my wife and me and her visiting parents. I would reserve the kitchen table and it was always a fun night out eating good food, talking to the chefs and getting a peek at what others have ordered. I can't recommend the kitchen table enough.

Of course, besides the holidays and family, we go throughout the year, too. There was a short gap when we didn't because they stopped serving their delicious mixed green salad with fried prosciutto and Gorgonzola cheese. Luckily, we weren't the only ones who complained over the deletion of this tasty dish and it has been rightfully returned to the menu. Yeah!

Meanwhile, the Apple Gorgonzola salad has become a terrific alternate choice. It looks elegant and is a tasty mix of Granny Smith apples, spiced walnuts and dried cranberries over mixed greens. I absolutely love their Italian vinaigrette that finds its way on most of their salads.

The above two salads are great. Not in the same rank is the chopped antipasto salad, which comes up a tad light on the toppings.

If you don't know what to order, it's hard to go wrong with their spaghetti and meatball, which is the size of a softball. Batter up! I also enjoy getting a side dish of their mild Italian sausage. They also offer spicy but I find it a bit too hot for my taste.

Our favorite pasta pick is the Qauttro al Forno that offers four flavorful pasta dishes on one plate to share. My wife and I will split the baked ravioli and stuffed shells while she'll take the cheese manicotti and I'll grab the chicken cannelloni. I'm getting the better half of the deal but she would argue that point.

Their pizzas are properly thin and crunchy but a tad pricy for what you get. We'll sometimes order a margherita pizza that's topped with fresh mozzarella cheese and basil but lately we've been disappointed. There's just not that much cheese or basil. For a few dollars more one can get a filling pasta dish. I'm also sort of bummed that they stopped leaving the bottle of spicy oil (and olive oil) at the table with your pizza order. You can request it and they'll bring a small dish of it. It's not as much fun.

Buca di Beppo excels at serving large parties. Be sure to give the Pope table a literal spin with the lazy susan featuring a bust of the Pope. There are several Bucas, but the closest one is at 16677 SouthPark Center in Strongsville or 1541 Golden Gate Plaza in Mayfield Heights.