The pizzeria has been in business for a number ofyears, but the menu continues to evolve. A newer addition is pizza made withgluten-free dough. The pizzas are not large (“piccolo” means “small”) and aremade in the Neapolitan style. This means a crust that is very thin in themiddle and thick around the edges. The thin spots are soft and doughy, not firmand crisp.
Eight standard toppings are offered along with a fewdaily specials. (You can also customize your own pizza with the many toppingsoffered.) The high quality of the ingredients is noticeable. The pizza consalame piccante ($8.25), or spicy pepperoni, has thin sheets of the sausageover a base of tomato sauce, provolone and mozzarella. The pepperoni nearlycovers the entire pizza. The pizza alla Piccola ($9.95) is the meatiest, tastyfennel sausage with provolone topped by olives, sliced mushrooms and onions. Arecent daily special, pizza salernitana ($8.25), combines provolone withmozzarella and grana cheeses and garlic. A bit of green color is provided byfresh arugula, and it makes for a delicious meld of flavors. Note that thetoppings here are traditionalyou will not find barbecue chicken or Hawaiianpizzas.
The menu ranges beyond pizzas with appetizers,salads, pastas, panini and desserts. A popular starter is the bocconcini dipane ($3.95), or bread knots, which can become too much if ordered with pizzaor pasta. Instead, try mozzarella alla pizzaiola ($6.25), a bowl of mozzarellanuggets with plenty of tomato, black olives and fresh oregano. It arrives witha few pieces of grilled bread. The bread quickly runs out, but save the restfor when the pizzas arrivethe excess crusts also work as eating utensils.
The same good rustic bread is used for panini. Thesimplest, panino ai formaggi ($7), has three cheeses with some fresh tomato.The bread, of the proper type, is grilled correctly. Chain restaurants never dothis right. Three options for penne pasta ($4.95-$8.25) include a vegetarianmarinara sauce, an Alfredo and a Bolognese sauce. The creamy Alfredo iscompetent but unremarkable. The meat ragu in the Bolognese is more compelling.
Salads are sized as starters. Insalata di rucola efunghi ($5.95) is arugula with fresh brown mushrooms, shavings of asiago cheeseand lemon vinaigrette. The lemon is too abundant. The Caesar salad ($4.50)consists of romaine lettuce with grated Parmesan. While the salad is properlytossed, the anchovy Romano dressing could use more of the anchovy and some ofthe lemon from the arugula salad. The daily soup special ($3.50) is a betterbet. The minestrone is full of vegetables and mushrooms with a few herbs andtraces of extra virgin olive oila good price and an even better soup.
Service is minimal, but the kitchen is on a propercourse. Appetizers, salads and soups will be delivered before the pizzas,panini and pastas at a civilized pace. There is a small list of wines by theglass and a smaller beer list. These are handed to you downstairs. Soft drinksare a serve-it-yourself affair upstairs. (This can be a bit of a nuisance forcustomers seated outdoors.) While nothing approaches the level of the food atthe ristorante next door, it does not matter: Pizzeria Piccola is a casualplace and a good choice for families. Besides, where else can you enjoy pizzawhile watching Rachael Ray perform on a flat-panel TV?
Pizzeria Piccola
7606 W. State St.
414-443-0800
$$
Credit Cards: All Major
Smoke-free
Handicap Access: Yes
