Ladies Lunch at Cafe Lazio

Yesterday was to beautiful a day to not take advantage of. With temperatures in the mid 70's, Spring was definitely in the air! I met my mother and my cousin Gina at Cafe Lazio at Patton Creek in Hoover for lunch. None of us had ever eaten there and we wanted to give it a try. We grabbed one of the umbrella topped tables on the patio outside. Out waitress, Tommi (a girl) brought over some menus and made some lunch suggestions. Namely the brushetta appetizer (5.95) and the hero sandwich (6.95) , "I don't even like hero's. But that sandwich is great!" insisted Tommi. I had thumbed through the clipper coupon mailer before we arrived and had a free slice of pizza with any purchase coupon burning a hole in my pocket, so I ordered the pasta salad and slice of cheese pizza. Tommi suggested I get a specialty salad rather than a small side. I listened to her suggestion and got a small greek salad and cheese slice. My mother chose the grilled vegetable flatbread sandwich (6.95) Gina ordered the vegetable calzone (6.50)

It wasn't long before Tommi returned with my greek salad. It was a perfect size. My only complaint was that the bowl it was in wasn't large enough for me to toss the salad and dressing without it spilling over the sides. The greek salad was a spring mix of greens, some Greek olives, greek peppers, roma tomatoes and feta cheese. The salad was served with the balsamic greek dressing. The dressing made the salad. It was delicious. I asked Tommi about the dressing, if they sold it by the bottle. She said they would. She said that both the ranch and balsamic greek are homemade. She also told me that Cafe Lazio is owned and operated by the same people that own Petrachelli's Italian Restaurant, on Highway 280 in Inverness. No wonder the dressing tasted familiar!

After finishing my salad, Tommi returned with the lunch orders. My mother's grilled vegetable flatbread sandwich looked delicious, with perfect grill marks. Inside were mushrooms, peppers, red onions, roma tomatoes and provolone cheese. She said it was very good.

Gina's calzone was big and golden. Inside of it there were bell peppers, mushrooms, green olives, mozzarella and tomatoes. Gina also commented on the great flavors of the calzone.

My slice of pizza was actually two. I couldn't eat it all and halved it and took the other half home. I ordered the cheese. It was the perfect amount of cheese. NOt so much where it is sliding around. The crust was light and pizza oven baked to perfection. I really liked the pizza.

Tommi was kind enough to bring me the pasta salad (small size portion) so that I could try it. I loved it. The pasta was tossed in olive oil and lightly seasoned with Italian spices. I had a reserved about of the dressing from my greek salad and drizzled it over the pasta-even better!

Next to us was another table of ladies lunching. We noticed the cannoli that was brought over to their table. We all looked at one another and agreed, we needed one too. We ordered one for dessert and split it. The cannoli was not to rich, with the slightest taste of cinnamon. It was served with chocolate drizzled over the top, whip cream dollops on the sides of the plate with strawberries on the whipped cream. Thank goodness I had dance class that night. The waitress told us that the cream inside the cannoli was made from ricotta cheese, confectioners sugar and mini chocolate morsels, beat together until smooth. It was very good! Worth the 2 bite indulgence! Our entire meal cost $19.00 and change for the three of us. (This after we used the free slice of pizza coupon and my mom had a coupon for a free flatbread sandwich with purchase of another entree) . What a deal! It was the prefect end to a lunch in the sunshine.

Cafe Lazio-A Slice of Italy

http://www.cafelazio.net/

Hours
Monday – Thursday 11:00am to 10:00pm
Friday and Saturday – 11:00am to 11:00pm
Sunday - 11:00am to 9:00pm

Located on Main Street at the Patton Creek Shopping Center in Hoover.

181 Main Street, Suite 241 Hoover, AL 35244205. 403.7480