My rule with restaurants has generally been that the less well-known a place is, the better the food. This has back-fired on me before, but Vino's Pizza & Italian Cuisine set things right.

The restaurant sits in a small shopping plaza on S.R. 13, just south of Race Track Road. It's unassuming exterior might lead you to pass right by without ever knowing it was there. But once you sink your teeth into a large slice of their homemade pizza - two slices and a drink for less than four bucks - you'll make it your new regular pizza joint.

I am no pizza newbie. It's my one true love - my friends know that when I die, I want to be buried with a slice. That said, I feel confident in saying that Vino's has excellent New York-style slices. And that's because owner Orhan Celeno worked at a New York pizzeria before moving to St. Johns County to be with family. But Celeno brought more than just the perfect pizza recipe with him; the menu also features pasta dishes, salads, wraps, sandwiches, calzones and mouth-watering desserts.

The food is mostly Italian with some American dishes thrown in for good measure, like a Philly steak sandwich and hot wings. While I haven't tasted the entire menu, I have yet to have one of their pasta dishes that didn't hit all the right spots.

And their signature dessert called "zeppolis" (sweet dough with chocolate sauce and powdered sugar) is the perfect ending to every meal. If there were ever a solution to world peace, it would include zeppolis.

And the service is outstanding. The staff all serve as waiters, cooks, cashiers and delivery guys. They're incredibly friendly and appreciate their customers.

While there may not be a lot to say about the atmosphere - there's not much more than a few tables and chairs, and a decidedly non-HD TV - the food and service make Vino's a standout lunch or dinner spot in the Northwest.

Speaking of which, I think it's time for a zeppolis break.

 

 

The food is mostly Italian with some American dishes thrown in for good measure, like a Philly steak sandwich and hot wings. While I haven't tasted the entire menu, I have yet to have one of their pasta dishes that didn't hit all the right spots.