The New York-style pizza is legit at Avellino’s in suburban Delray Beach
Avellinos, just doors away from 3Gs Deli
A strip center pizzeria/Italian restaurant on W. Atlantic Avenue has a nostalgic look, excellent pizzas that will make you a regular customer, and a menu of Italian-American favorites, some successful, others less so.
By ALAN J. WAX
Lunching recently at Avellino’s Italian Restaurant, located a few doors down from 3G’s Deli in a strip center in suburban Delray Beach, I could not help but imagine I was in an old-time pizza parlor in New York City.
Two slices plus a beverage are $6 at lunch.
First, there are the dark booths and the mosaic black and white checkered tile floor that stretches from the front door to the pickup counter in the rear. And there are the walls, which are decorated with travel posters and photos of Italy and famous Italian-Americans.
But more importantly, there’s the New York-style pizza. It’s the real deal ($6 for two slices and a soda at lunch) with a nice crispy, foldable crust and a good balance of cheese and a slightly sweetish sauce that almost reaches the edge. To be sure, the cheese was slightly greasy, but that’s easily remedied with a couple of dabs with a paper napkin. So good, I almost ordered an additional slice.
Veal parmagiana.
Eggplant rollatini.
Pasta Fazool soup.
Avellino’s opened in 2019 in a space that previously housed Guido’s Brick Oven Pizza. It does a brisk takeout business, especially on Wednesdays when a plain cheese pie for takeaway goes for $13. There are no Avellino family members around to my knowledge. And there’s no mom and pop in the kitchen. Public records show the eatery is owned by entrepreneurs Todd Reiss and Andrew Gervolino. The former, who identifies himself on his LinkedIn
Chicken Francaise.
Garlic knots.
Minestrone soup.
profile as a pizza maker, has been involved in the pizza business for almost 40 years, including a long stint at Antonio’s Pizza Rant in Davie, and West Side Pizza in Plantation.
My first visit to Avellino’s was in late 2019, several months after the restaurant opened. There was no sign above the door at that time. I was not overly impressed and didn’t return until I’d heard recent raves from friends.
Pizza aside, my thinking hasn’t changed since my initial visit.
Reasonably priced entrees come with either a sizeable house salad with a choice of dressing, or a bowl of soup, which, of course, has the potential to fill you up before you attack your main. That’s especially true of the hearty, flavorful pasta fazool, a bowl brimming with cannellini beans, digitali pasta and bits of carrots. Minestrone soup also is a thick, credible rendition loaded with leafy greens.
Veal parmigiana ($23), my benchmark Italian dish, was a thick-sliced scallopini, crispy and chewy. The red sauce, which had an orangish tint, lacked verve.
Eggplant rollatini ($20,) three slices of eggpant filled with a ricotta blend, appeared atop a plate of al dente penne covered with a sauce that seemed more like unseasoned tomato paste..
Avellino’s dining room.
Chicken Francaise ($21), my wife’s go-to dish in any Italian restaurant, was tender, but the lemon-wine butter sauce needed more of the citrus flavor. Ordered without a parsley garnish it arrived covered in the green herb. It was whisked away by our server and returned as ordered. Spaghetti accompanying the chicken was a pile of strands stuck together, perhaps by excess starch. Her words: “It’s nothing I’m jumping up and down about!”
There are wine specials every Wednesday and Thursday evening, a bottle for $12. On our most recent visit, the wines of Estrella winery, a California appellation cellared and bottled in Sonoma, was on offer. The wines aren’t available at retail in the area, but they are sold nationally at an average price of about $6. We passed.
I’d go back to Avellino’s anytime for their fine pizza, but as for dishes from the kitchen, I’ll take a pass.
Avellino’s Italian Restaurant
5869 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach 33484
(561) 332-3544
