Restaurant Review: Pizza Villa of Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin

Pizza Villa, located just off of Broadway in the heart of Wisconsin Dells, offers different pasta dishes, salads, sandwiches, burgers, and of course, pizza. For appetizers, there are such items as Bruschetta (toasted French bread topped with diced tomatoes, red onions, basil, and parmesan cheese), Fried Ravioli, Pizza Rolls (crispy egg roll skins stuffed with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses and served with marinara sauce), Pizza Fries (thin crust dough covered with garlic butter and topped with mozzarella cheese, then cut into thick slices and served with marinara sauce), and Mozzarella Sticks.

Pizza Villa salads include the Side Salad (with lettuce, onions, green peppers, and mushrooms), the Classic Caesar Side Salad (with romaine lettuce, parmesan cheese, and Caesar salad dressing), the Villa Salad (with lettuce, onions, green peppers, mushrooms, black and green olives, pepperoni, and mozzarella cheese), and the Chicken Salad (with lettuce, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, black olives, parmesan cheese, and a choice of grilled chicken or crispy, deep-fried chicken strips).

Sandwiches include the Italian Beef, Meatball Sub, Grilled Chicken Breast, Grilled Chicken Marinara, and the Bacon Bar-B-Que Chicken Breast. Some of the pastas offered are Lasagna, Beef or Cheese Ravioli, Portabella Ravioli, Fettuccini Alfredo, and Manicotti.

Of course, what Pizza Villa is best known for is pizza. One may order a thin or pan-style pizza with toppings such as Italian sausage, pepperoni, ground beef, Canadian bacon, garlic, extra cheese, fresh or canned mushrooms, spinach, onions, etc. One may also order a specialty pizza, such as the Margherita Pizza (made with mozzarella cheese, fresh tomatoes, olive oil and garlic), the Hawaiian Pizza (made with pineapple, Canadian bacon, and cheddar cheese), and the White Pizza (made with alfredo sauce, spinach, fresh tomatoes, and fresh mushrooms).

I stopped in at Pizza Villa recently on a Wednesday evening. I had never been to Pizza Villa before, and since I had a coupon for a large, 3-topping pizza, I decided to give the place a try.

Walking in the place, I found it rather empty except for a lone couple sitting in the corner (who were close to leaving). The hostess, who looked about 18 (I later learned she was 22) looked at me with some confusion until I told her I wished to be seated. My waitress came around quickly (she also looked about 18) and provided me with a menu.

I ordered my drink quickly (a Coke), and for my pizza I chose a thin-crust with fresh mushrooms (there were also canned mushrooms), fresh tomatoes (I never saw any canned tomatoes), and pepperoni.

After 15-20 minutes, my pizza arrived, sliced up into little squares. I waited until it had piped down a little bit and then sampled a piece. The crust was very thin and had a kind of naan bread/matzo cracker taste to it. The sauce was decent, and the toppings were plentiful enough for my taste. Pizza Villa did not have the best pizza I'd ever tasted, but it certainly was not the worst. I ate up a good 20% of my 14-inch pizza before asking that the rest be boxed up to go.

Had I not brought in my coupon, my pizza would have cost $19.44. As it were, my total on the pizza came to about $10. Not bad for a large pizza. The guy (who appeared no older than 20) who rung up my order did not quite know how to work the cash register, but he figured out my change correctly in the end.

I would head back to Pizza Villa to try the place's pasta dishes, or even their sandwiches. Of course, having another coupon wouldn't hurt either!

Here is some more information about Pizza Villa:

737 Superior Street
Wisconsin Dells, WI 53965
Phone: (608)254-8394