GERALDI'S Italian Eatery; A Must Stop Location Near Eureka Springs, Arkansas

During a Sunday drive my family and I happened to pass through a quiet retirement village in Northwest Arkansas. Holiday Island is located about 9 miles from Eureka Springs, Arkansas. It sits snugly around Hwy 23, and looks like a quiet spot in the hilly terrain of the Ozark Mountains. However, it is much more. Nestled behind a gas station and a block up Parkwood Drive is a fantastic restaurant named GERALDI'S.

GERALDI'S is an Italian eatery that serves New York style pizza, sub sandwiches, pasta and much more. The Holiday Island Geraldi's location is owned and operated by Jayson Blocksidge. It is open Monday through Saturday from 11am to 8pm and Sunday 10am to 3pm. The restaurant is large and spacious, has free Wi-Fi and has a large flat panel television, perfect for game days. There is ample parking, but due to the restaurant's hillside location parking is located at the back of the restaurant.

My husband and I have had the privilege of eating at the GERALDI'S located in Eureka Springs, Arkansas when it was still owned by its original owner, the man now seen on the franchises' pizza box. The food there was authentic, flavorful and well worth the moderate price. The fact that we had eaten at the original Eureka Springs GERALDI'S had actually deterred us from stopping at the Holiday Island location, even though we had seen the advertisement announcing the Holiday Island location for months.

However hunger and a clear schedule actually helped lure us to the new GERALDI'S. The GERALDI'S at the Holiday Island location completely lived up to our expectations. To this day I can remember sinking my teeth into my first Italian sausage sub sandwich, an experience I repeated eagerly at the Holiday Island location. I was greatly impressed.

My husband ordered the prime rib sub sandwich, and like normal, we shared our food. His prime rib sandwich was flavorful and melted in my mouth. It was well seasoned with aus jus, melted cheese and peppers.

We also ordered an extra large New York style pizza for the children. While we had plans to take the left overs home to consume at a later time, the kids devoured all but one piece of pizza. My husband and I split the last piece of pizza. The pizza was phenomenal. The vegetables were fresh, the crust was light and the tomato sauce was perfectly seasoned.

Another thing that made this GERALDI'S location a must stop spot was the friendliness of the owner, staff and patrons. Jayson came to our table, sat down and spoke to us. It was not a normal canned conversation. Through our conversation I actually learned that Jayson had worked as a journalist, a career not much unlike my own. He was extremely friendly, inviting and also aware of Associated Content, something that I thought was quite impressive. During our visit the regular customers shared stories about this GERALDI'S location, their fondness for Jayson and their love for the great food.

If you're in the Eureka Springs, Arkansas area the short trip to GERALDI'S at Holiday Island is well worth the drive.