Sylvia's Pizza, located both on the Corner and the Downtown Mall, is just like any other neighborhood pizza restaurant at first glance. Patrons feel comfortable walking in, grabbing their food, and settling in for some great conversation with good friends. But it's also unlike many other pizza places around because it offers amazingly good food at reasonable prices.
There is a reason why Sylvia's, which opened six years ago, was voted Charlottesville's Best Non-National Chain Restaurant, and why it has expanded not only to serve all of Charlottesville, but also the Raleigh, N.C. community. Although its décor is simple, and the opera music playing above won't have customers dancing in their seats, Sylvia's friendly service and great food prove that less is more.
Sylvia's satisfies even the pickiest eater because it has something for everyone. With 44 toppings ranging from cheese and pepperoni to BBQ chicken and feta cheese, diners can easily find an old favorite or try something new and exotic. And while the old standby may be good -- the cheese had plenty of cheese without the grease you might expect and the pepperoni seemed pretty darn healthy -- trying something new and a little different proved to be a smart idea.
For instance, the Spinach and Eggplant and Spinach and Feta combinations were excellent. Though there might have been a tad too much spinach, each was very good; there wasn't a whole lot of drippy sauce, and the huge serving proved to be filling. The Veggie selection was laden with huge slices of very fresh vegetables, and while the Mushroom pizza could have used more cheese, it was still very tasty (especially if you enjoy a lot of mushrooms).
However, the BBQ Chicken and Broccoli was nothing to write home about. While you get almost half a chicken breast with a fairly decent BBQ sauce, the broccoli seems unnecessary. (The restaurant also offers it with bacon, mushrooms, red Bermuda onions or sweet red peppers. Any one of those would probably have added more flavor.) The slice would have been better if the tomato sauce had been replaced with BBQ sauce as well.
Each selection had an almost perfect crust: crispy on the outside but soft inside. When customers order what they want, the chefs at the counter put their selection in a big, fiery oven. The pizza is half-cooked when customers choose it; placing it in the oven right before serving it makes the pizza hot and crunchy. This is a nice change from heat lamp-warmed pies at other pizza restaurants.
Aside from the great food at Sylvia's, the restaurant's prices make it a perfect choice for students on a budget who still want to eat off Grounds. A slice of cheese pizza (which fills an entire plate and then some) will set customers back $1.75, while additional toppings cost a quarter each after that.
"Specialty slices," Sylvia's more gourmet options, range from $3.25 to $3.75. Whole pizzas, ranging from sizes small to extra large, cost between $6 and $10.
Reasonable prices and really good pizza lead to a lot of regular customers. Giovanni Sestito, who owns Sylvia's with his brother and who is originally from Calabria, Italy, said Sylvia's is one of the few places on either the Downtown Mall or the Corner where you can grab a complete lunch or even dinner for under $5.
"I think the variety and amount of ingredients for the price" makes Sylvia's unique, Sestito said.
Sestito also claimed Sylvia's food "is more traditional Italian."
In fact, in an effort to bring customers more authentic Italian food, Sylvia's soon will expand its menu to include pastas, lasagna and parmagiano.
"We're trying to expand to more of an Italian restaurant," Sestito said.
He said Sylvia's will continue to offer great pizza and great prices, but is excited to eventually offer new dishes.
He added that he sees the menu expansion as a way to provide customers access to Italian foods they have never tasted.
While Sestino stresses that he makes a "mean spaghetti with meatballs," he also said he feels there is more to Italian food than this American favorite.
That's why Sylvia's will soon offer, as Sestito puts it, "Pasta -- with variety"
Read More
Days on the Lawn gives newly admitted Class of 2028 a taste of Grounds
By Miriella Jiffar and Mia Tan | 5 hours agoThe annual spring program invites newly admitted students and their families to experience information sessions, resource fairs and tours around Grounds.
The weight of saying “I love you”
By Mai Hukuoka | 2 days agoWhile grand gestures can't fully describe the weight of love, that doesn't mean love has to be small. Love can, and should, feel heavy.
Cooking, my mother’s love language
By Emilie Kim | 4 days agoDespite our different temperaments, my mother and I understand each other perfectly through the language of food.
