Restaurant Review: Buca Di Beppo in Dallas, Texas

In September of 2006, my Ebaybes and Emales Meetup Group met at Buca di Beppo, an attractive, casual little Italian restaurant for our monthly casual lunch. I arrived around 11:30 am to meet and talk with the other members. We visited the location on 7843 Park Lane in Dallas, Texas.

As a strict vegetarian I have difficulty ordering off a regular menu, but after some perusing, I finally decided on the Roasted Vegetable, which had fresh zucchini, yellow squash, roasted yellow and red bell peppers, and red onions spread with a kalamata olive tapenade. Silly me, though, I was so busy talking to my fellow eBay sellers that I didn't realize this was a sandwich!

My husband arrived before the entree did, and I moved to another location in the room so I could sit next to him. This didn't seem to faze the waitstaff at all, though. When my sandwich arrived it was huge and tasty, and fully enough for both me and my husband. I was happy since the total bill was under $10.

We never had the occasion to eat here again. However there were a lot of other fresh vegetarian selections on the menu, including Mozzarella Caprese Salad, which has fresh mozzarella cheese, vine-ripened tomatoes and roasted yellow and red bell peppers, with garlic olive oil and fresh basil. Also, there was the Margherita Pizza, which is topped with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil. The Ravioli al Pomodoro also looked good, with cheese ravioli served in a marinara sauce. Although I avoid heavy cream sauces, the Fettuccine Alfredo also seems completely vegetarian. The menu offered a wide variety of selections for both vegetarian and meat-eating patrons.

There is a small selection of appetizers, including garlic bread, garlic bread with mozzarella, bruschetta, fried calamari, and pan fried fresh mozzarella.

The selection of salads is also nice. The Insalate Portofino is a new selection, which includes fresh salmon, baby arugula, orzo pasta, feta cheese, Kalamata olives, grape tomatoes and red onion in a pesto vinaigrette. They also offer a soup and salad selection, with the soup of the day with a Caesar or mixed green salad, served with a wedge of garlic bread.

Other sandwiches include the Chicken Pesto and Meatball Provolone. Entrees include Chicken with Lemon, Chicken Parmigiana, Eggplant Parmigiana, and Fresh Salmon with Pesto.

And this is just the lunch menu!

Buca di Beppo has locations in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.

It has a great atmosphere and attractive decorations throughout the restaurant. This is a great place, which serves very fresh food very fast, for a reasonable price.