Pana Roma Pizza & Pasta — Restaurant in Panama City

To me, friendly and great service accounts for 50% of any dining experience, the staff here excelled at that. Food; fresh quality, preparation and standards, hygiene and cleanliness of the estanlishment accounts for the other 50%. From all the 5 star ratings I read, I was somewhat disappointed. This is a great place for families, very small but intimate. My sausage pizza (16" for large) had finely crumbled sausage, so fine there was no oil or flavor, basically a dry pie, it had little or no seasoning, nor olive oil. I tried the eggplant parm over spaghetti, this was very good but nothing to write Sicily about. Portion size was more than ample, had nice covering of gravy (sauce). From reading reviews I expected fresh homemade pasta, this was not imho, I make my own pastas with Doppio 00 Italian flour, I grow my own San Marzano tomatoes and makes gravies. Pana Roma's sauce was good but tasted canned, however it was thick. The house salad was delicious, cold and fresh, however it was chopped so tiny into 1/4" pieces, I couldn't tell if there was tomato. Prices were very fair and conpetative. The wine list had no Cianti or red Italian table wine. I requested balsamic vinegar but they don't carry it. The interior of restaurant was very clean, however the ceiling tiles are old, falling apart and discolored. I had tiles fall on my head and meal 2 yrs ago while dining on Panama City Beach. My waitress at Pana Roma I'm happy to report visited the rest room and it was obvious she washed her hands upon exiting. Would I return here again? Yes with family and kids, not for fine Italian dining. I apologize, but all the 5 star reviews has over rated this estanlishment regarding the food, but a sure 5 stars for friendly prompt service, good hygiene, cleanliness, easy location with...

Bravo! I grew up in NY and still visit often, I've lived all over the country and have tried a hundred different pizza places claiming to be NY style. This is one of the best. A small clean and nicely decorated mom and pop shop. An older Italian looking couple periodically walked around to make sure everything was good (I assume the owners). My table ordered garlic knots as an appetizer (4 for $2) which were pretty legit but could have been a bit more cooked to add firmness. Then we ordered a 16" pie (half margherita, half meat lovers) which was perfectly done. NY style crust was thin enough to fold but not so thin as to where it'd fall apart. Also cooked well enough to have a slight crunch without cutting your gums or too soft where it goes limp when you pick it up. Cheese was fresh and well proportioned. Margherita reminded me of true Italian NY style pizza from back home. Meat lovers was also very good and they had a ton of meat on it. Lastly, I usually like to add parmesan, oregano, and garlic powder to my pizza (common in NY), which is almost impossible to find in the rest of the country as they look at you in confusion when you ask for it. This place had them readily available to make my delicious pizza = perfect. Service was above average, very friendly, but a bit slow at times but (that's because they're a busy little restaurant since their food is good). Overall the only thing they need is some Sicilian pies (specifically Grandma style). I'll definitely be back to try the other Italian entrees that they offer, and looking at what the other customers were ordering I wouldn't be surprised if it was all just as good...

Four of us went for lunch and due to previous good experience ordered the eggplant parmigiana. When the salad came out we mentioned to the waitress that it was wilted and full of lettuce heels. She said that they had changed suppliers and had several complaints and should have rejected the last delivery due to poor quality. When the eggplant came out, all four orders had a heavy overcooked crust and an unrecognizable inside. When we told the waitress how this did not compare to the great dishes we had in the past she apologized and called the cook (chef?). She came out and said that they had changed suppliers and that the eggplant was so thin that when she cooked it , it was mushy and she had to deep fry it and consequently it was so hard and overcooked to be not edible. She offered an extra helping of spaghetti as compensation but when that was turned down she said that was all she could do without calling the General Manager. Later she returned and offered us $2 each off of our tab. When I asked if that was what she thought the entree was worth she said that was all the General Manager would approve.

I don't know if this is a result of cost cutting or new help or what but the changes and lack of concern by management has cost them four good customers.

PS The waitress was excellent and tried her best to smooth over...