150 Jennifer Road, Ste. F, Annapolis 443-949-0608 | pasticcioannapolis.com
I’d heard about the newish Italian eatery and its unique set-up. Tucked between the Annapolis Home Goods and the new Benjamin Moore paint center (near Trader Joe’s), Pasticcio places a big emphasis on catering and carry-out (with generous coupons to make carry-out a “steal”), but with a full restaurant menu for dine-in customers. And you just may want to sit right down in the bright and clean 16-seat counter service storefront. We liked the bright chartreuse and orange theme, with colorful oversize tomato and basil leaf “wallpaper.”
It’s soft drinks only in-house, but you won’t mind when you check out the novel pizza options on display for your slice selection: no ordinary tomato pies. The dough knots in the front case along with pizza are eye-catching and could make a nice snack as they come three to an order along with marinara. And there’s more—much more, which could explain the steady stream of people coming and going for carry-out and dining in. It’s clearly popular.
Antonio Capuano owned restaurants in New Jersey before moving to Annapolis, bringing along some Jersey pizza traditions, such as “white pizza” always including ricotta. In fact, there are seven different white pizza offered out of 16. Other updated American-style pizzas include Buffalo Chicken, Cheesesteak, Hawaiian, and Caprese.
The flatbreads looked promising, which turned out to be a very thin, oval crust of dough measuring 14” x 3 1/2.” The selection of five toppings seemed to fulfill the salad category with lots of arugula, spring mix, cherry tomatoes, and even apple slices.
With so much to choose from, we ordered up a storm to eat in…our clearly authentic Italian counterman even remarked, “That’s a lot of food!” We could only smile. For starters, we went with a medium 14-inch white veggie pizza from the numerous combinations available, knowing we could box up the extra slices to leave room for heartier entrees. It proved to be a pleasant cross between crispy crust on the bottom and chewy rim, which encased thick layers of fresh mozzarella and creamy ricotta, all dotted with a colorful veggie medley. We gave it an added sprinkle of fragrant oregano, and spicy red pepper. It was hard to stop at the one slice we vowed to stick to, but because it was white pizza, we, of course, also had to sample something with the house marinara. Pasticcio offers several “sides,” including crab arancini—homemade, stuffed rice balls—and the familiar onion rings, mozzarella sticks, and chicken wings. Our pick: meatballs with marinara. Three two-inch, old-style meatballs were made the way an Italian grandma would do it and were finely ground, but not too spicy. The tomato-based sauce was mild and balanced, and a great option to accentuate many of the dishes, especially if you’re going to sample as many as we ordered.
Surprisingly, there are many salads of which antipasto is one. The Italian-born owner, Capuano, mentions that he tries to balance sweetness and acidity, and give some contemporary options: for example, a salad with spring mix lettuce, green apples, red onions, caramelized walnuts, and goat cheese is the best seller. Another one has fresh spinach, pears, cheese, and caramelized walnuts.
Casual food is an option with subs, wraps, soups, calzone, Stromboli, and burgers. Additionally, entrees include a large offering of pasta dishes, seafood, and chicken. There is also a gluten-free category with one pizza offered, along with ravioli and penne pasta with your choice of sauce.
After the hefty “appetizers” of pizza and meatballs, my dining companion skipped over many favorite dishes like mussels or eggplant parmesan with spaghetti and chose one of the lighter specials: grilled octopus salad. The manager said he put it on the menu three months ago and it became so popular, that it’s a house standard now. Beautiful presentation. A large serving of fresh greens, billed as a mix of arugula and mint, thin shavings of fresh fennel, and, in the true old-world style, a whole uncut octopus tentacle, made the plate.: This was the real deal, with its gorgeous purple and snow-white flesh nicely cooked. The dressing was a citrus-y vinaigrette, with sweet notes.
The Italian classic, Chicken Saltimbocca, was my choice for an entrée with the option of house salad or spaghetti as a side. The words “family style” came to mind when two very large pan-seared chicken breasts in a butter white wine sauce with layers of prosciutto, mozzarella, and wilted spinach arrived to the table. The chicken was accompanied by a very fresh house salad—much better than the usual “afterthought,” with mixed greens, carrot strips, cucumber, pepperoncini, and shaved red onion sporting bright color and crisp texture.
Skip dessert after all this? Pasticcio has desserts by the slice or portion on display in its refrigerator case—a nice selection of Italian-themed options, such as the lemon mascarpone cake, profiterole, and Tiramisu. We liked our choice of lemon mascarpone cake. Moist layers of sponge cake with a real lemon-flavored mascarpone cream between the layers. We were tempted to take home another piece to enjoy with a cappuccino, perhaps. But we already had our next meal planned from splitting up the pizza and chicken to take home.
