Luciano Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria — Restaurant in Virginia

I visited on a Saturday evening and placed a takeout order which was ready a little ahead of the promised time. My order consisted of a chef salad, sausage and peppers appetizer and side of steak fries, meat ravioli and a side salad, and tiramisu.

The chef salad had a bright and fresh taste with just the right amount of cheese to avoid overindulging. I like their rolls to accompany a salad, and their had a satisfying hard exterior and chewy interior. Luciano makes their own sausage, and the taste definitely connotes fennel as advertised. The peppers remained relatively crisp in the marinara sauce which did not have too much fat from the sausage for my taste. I have had more generous portions of steak fries in the past, and I would like them to fill the basket further if possible. Crispiness was as good as one could hope for surviving a ten minute car ride. The meat ravioli was just as satisfying as the side salad was forgettable and unsatisfying. I would suggest offering a mini chef salad instead and charging accordingly instead of putting a rather paltry version of a salad next to hearty ravioli or other pasta dishes. The tiramisu had a strong coffee flavor and delicious marscapone cheese. This version comes in the form of a slice rather than a square and has the ladyfingers on the side of the cake rather than layered on the interior. Still the overall flavor was predictably on point.

The bill totalled just under $60 before tax and tip. I like the option to give food to a community food bank in increments of $10 extra. Staff service struck me as cordial and efficient especially for a Saturday evening. Even though there may be places with more refined Italian food in the area, I could easily return to sample more red sauce fare from a small business with local history and ties conveniently located...

My review is old, I’m writing this belatedly. Why? Because if a restaurant can last well over 20 years in that tiny tucked-away shopping center, you KNOW they’re doing SOMETHING delicious, it’s worth it to me to confirm; here’s my story:

Back in 2000 (yes, almost 25 years ago), I was regularly eating Luciano’s pizza when I lived in the area. Their calzones & eggplant parm are also stellar selections, I suspect their phenomenal cheese and spice profile have a hand in this. The full espresso machine and authentic desserts are also crowd pleasers if anyone has the self-control to leave room for dessert.

Back to the star of this particular episode: the PIZZA! Their pizza crust is the first I’ve ever ravenously enjoyed, I usually leave edge crusts of lesser pizzas behind. Their pizza is so incredible, it ruined me for eating any other pizza for roughly TEN YEARS! I moved hundreds of miles away, it’s not like I could scratch my Luciano pizza itch, so I literally ABSTAINED FROM PIZZA for over ten years! Those first four were as a college student! JUST IMAGINE how good a pizza has to be for a broke, starving college kid to reject ALL OTHER PIZZA IN THE WORLD! Pizza is one of the four food groups as a college student!

Despite my struggle, I have since regained my ability to eat other pizza and find them somewhat palatable. And though I currently live very close to one of the nation’s pizza meccas, New Haven, I am still regularly haunted by the ghost of Luciano Pizza Past 300 miles and 25 years later, fondly reminiscing as I craft a pool of drool. I should be sleeping right now, but Luciano Pizza ghost won’t let me until my story is told. And with that...

On the recommendation of a former New Yorker and long time resident of northern Virginia, my lovely spouse and I decided to head to Luciano for a late lunch on New Year's Day. They were not busy, so I can't talk to that aspect. We ordered their Special pizza, a large in case it would be good enough to take leftovers home, and a bowl of their Italian Wedding soup as an appetizer. The waitress immediately provided warm bread with real butter. The restaurant appears to have a decent assortment of alcohol, both wine and liquor. Hot tea was offered as an assortment in a case presented at the table. The hot water was served in a mug, and was plenty hot to brew. The wedding soup was some of the best I've ever had, with just the right mixture of greens, meat, and a touch of pasta, in a tasty broth. The pizza was served on a traditional elevated stand tray. This was absolutely essential for this pie, fresh out of the oven, with beautiful strings of melted cheese following the slice to our plates. This asserted "New York"-style pizza got it all right. Thin crust of a worthy dough, onions, pepperoni, green pepper, a touch of artichoke, and a complement of tomato sauce, not overwhelming as with many pizzas. Two slices each were plenty, and we had plenty to take home. Just because, we ordered a pair of dessert cannoli. These we took home and shared four ways. This was a better than average rendition. The filling was just right consistency and slightly sweet, with the contrast of the crust-like shell. The owner was present, clearly proud of his 49 years in the business. Highly recommend this restaurant for both sit-down...