Pizza Roma and Pasta House, Cranberry, PA

20315 Rt. 19 Cranberry Township, PA
1-724-776-1577

Pizza Roma and Pasta House has been a fixture in Cranberry for over 26 years.  It's easy to see why they have been in business for such a long time - the pizza was excellent and the staff was very friendly.

We ordered a traditional crust pizza with red pizza sauce.  The sauce is homemade; it is deep, rich and flavorful.  The cheese for the pizzas is shredded on the premises and it is very fresh tasting.   We especially liked the crust - it was thin, but sturdy enough to hold up to the extra sauce that we ordered.  The pizzas are baked in Pizza Roma's "old-fashioned stone ovens".

Pizza Roma has three new varities of Specialty Pizza - Spinach Feta, Steak Ranch and Onion, and Buffalo Chicken.  Other pizzas include Sicilian style, Seafood Pizza (with red or white sauce), White Pizza and Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza.  In addition to the pizzas, they serve eight types of hoagies, six different types of calzone, Sandwiches and Burgers, wings and wing wings, salads and appetizers.   Dinners are also available, and include pasta, gnocchi, veal and chicken parmesan, eggplant and more.  We are especially interested in trying their Stuffed Hot Pepper Calzone and some of their homemade soup on our next trip.

Pizza Roma has a fairly large and comfortable dining area and a small bar.  They also offer take-out and delivery to the Cranberry area.

Monte Cello's Italian Restaurant - Cranberry, PA

30325 Perry Highway
Cranberry Twp, PA 16066
1-724-772-3133

We have often enjoyed Monte Cello's Sicilian pizza, but had never tried their traditional round thin pizza. We were in the area yesterday and decided the time was right - and it was fantastic!

The traditional round crust was firm and chewy; crunchy on the outside, with a light and breadlike interior. The rich sauce - which is different from the sauce used on their Sicilian pizza - has a deep, spicy tomato flavor and a gorgeous color.

Monte Cello's traditional round thin pizza is available in four sizes, with toppings an additional charge:

• Mini 9" 4 cut - $4.50


• Small 9" 6 cut - $6.50


• Medium 14" 8 cut - $7.50


• Large 16" 10 cut - $8.95
  

We're glad we went back!

Monte Cello's of Cranberry

30325 Perry Highway
Cranberry Twp, PA 16066
1-724-772-3133

Every so often, we get a craving for a nice, thick slice of Sicilian style pizza - and when we do, we head straight for Monte Cello's!

Monte Cello's has 8 locations in the Pittsburgh area - downtown Pittsburgh, Sewickley, Shaler, Ross Township, Wexford, Hampton, Zelionople, and Cranberry. The only location we've tried so far is Cranberry. It has two dining areas; one side is a family friendly restaurant and the other a more casual lounge with plenty of tables and booths, a couple of video games to help pass the time, and televisions tuned to sports channels. We usually place our order for take-out pizza, but then sit in the casual bar area and have soup while we wait. The restaurant staff are all very pleasant and accommodating - we've always had excellent, friendly service!

They make four different styles of pizza - Traditional (round, thin), Sicilian (square, thick), Chicago (round deep dish) and Pan Pizza (round, thick). They offer plenty of variations in these basic styles, including a white pizza with fresh toppings, Buffalo Chicken pizza, Taco pizza, and Joe's Special Pizza among other others. On a recent visit, we were told that the dough is fresh daily and the sauce for the Sicilian pizza is made fresh daily at their location. I was pleased to see that they offer a whole wheat crust as an option, but we haven't yet tried that.

The Sicilian pizza is hearty, with a thick, breadlike crust and a rich sauce. They are very generous with the cheese - which, according to their website, is 100% fresh mozzarella and provolone - and the toppings are plentiful. We like to ask for extra sauce but light cheese, and that makes the proportions a little closer to our personal taste. (The pizza in the photo is with the normal proportions of cheese and sauce.)


Monte Cello's has an extensive menu, from appetizers and snacks to full dinners. We love their Wedding Soup, which is very thick with lots of ancini de pepi, tiny and delicious meatballs, and broth that tastes fresh and homemade. We sometimes order the Pressure Fried Chicken, which is one of their specialties. It's wonderfully tender, non-greasy, and very reasonably priced - a small order of four pieces, with a side of mashed potatoes that's easily big enough to share, is only $5.50!