Sarasota County Best Pizzeria

What is it about Italian restaurants that start the appetite juices flowing? Is it the aroma of fresh ground parmesan cheese or recently chopped basil? Maybe it's the sweet swell of imported olive oil that wafts through the place. It could be the aroma of a pizza being baked in a brick oven almost ready to the delight of the table of four that ordered it.

At Mama Maria's Pizzeria it's all of the above. Located in the Galleria Mall on the east side of highway forty-one in Venice, Florida, it's hard to image that this non descript location is home to arguably the best pizza in Sarasota county, if not the state of Florida.
The owners are originally from Boston, Massachusetts. They arrived in Venice, Florida in the early 1980's and have been at the present location ever since.

This is truly a family run restaurant. Son Eddy and son-in-law Joe are usually both in the kitchen turning out the mouth watering pizzas. Eddy is the big guy in the photo below arranging a table for a lunchtime business meeting. Notice the sleeveless t-shirt, black, of course.
Today is his day off. But when you are part of a family run business you're on call 24/7. Brother-in-law Joe is in the kitchen. Lisa the youngest daughter of Mama Maria is one of the servers and is Joe's wife. She has an uncanny talent for remembering exactly what you ordered the last time you visited Mama Maria's Pizzeria.

So, all is well. I take my seat at the usual table for four just inside the entrance to the left. There's a sign at the door that tells you to wait for the server to be seated. But it's rarely honored. I'm alone this time. My lady friend is off on a trip abroad. She's the one who found the place. Believe me, she doesn't impress easily. She is a gourmet chef at home. She even owned a restaurant in New York City.

We always order the same, a small tomato pizza. But every dish that we've seen served at the restaurant, from the foot long calzone to the mouth watering pasta dishes, tempts us to try something new. Peruse the menu I've included with this piece to find something that stimulates your taste buds. We've never heard anyone complain about any of the dishes in the three years since we've been eating here.

The small tomato pizza belies its name. There are six sizeable slices enough to satisfy even the most demanding appetites. The crust is thin and crispy, sin the doughy, oily slices that most pizzerias serve. The mozzarella cheese is made especially for the restaurant and the dough consists of water that comes from out of state, which gives the pizza that special, unique taste when mixed with the flour and virgin olive oil.

Try Mama Maria's pizzeria. I'm sure you'll not be disappointed. Let me know if you agree that it is arguably one of the best pizzerias in Sarasota County.