Vinnys Pizza and Pasta — Restaurant in Virginia

The pizza and garlic knots are good. Not great. Not amazing, but good, and for the money, a good value.

We got a pepperoni and Canadian bacon pizza. The cheese and sauce coverage could be better, reaching closer to the edge, but on the whole it ain't bad. The pizza has a nice texture. Most of it is very soft, with the crust at the edge offering more more bite, for those who like a more chewy pizza. Not bad.

The pizza does not have a strong flavor of pepperoni, which is often the dominant flavor on a pizza like this. The pepperoni they use appears to be quite mild in flavor. If you are a pepperoni lover, and want that strong taste of pepperoni, this may not be for you. The ham also had a nice flavor, again without being really forward.

The pizza did have some nice herbs as seasoning on top. They offer a nice color and flavor. This isn't a flavor and texture I'd want in pizza all the time, but as a change of pace it's really nice.

Okay, the weirdest part of this experience: This pizza has a taste and texture from the first bite that was immediately familiar; it was pleasant, but not an experience I associate with pizza. My first thought was that this reminded me strongly of another kind of food, but I couldn't be sure that was really what I was tasting. After two slices, I was sure in my conclusion, and I voiced this to my wife, who immediately agreed.

An omelet. This pizza has the taste and texture of an omelet.

It is soft in the first bite, and distinctly eggy. I love omelets, and this discovery was not wholly unwelcome. An omelet pizza is definitely not the worst kind of pizza I've had, and again, as a change of pace it was great. I wouldn't want it all the time. This is not a taste and texture I usually associate with pizza.

The crust is rather thin, but soft, similar to a New York- style pizza. The slices are large and easy to fold. The cutting of the pizza was a little lopsided, and some slices were a lot larger than others. The crust out near the edge is rather pale. For some people, this is under-done, although since the result isn't doughy, I would say it's fully-cooked. It's not as dark and toasted as I usually prefer, but that may in part be a function of the type of dough used. Maybe this dough just doesn't darken readily when cooked. In any event, I was happy with the crust.

The garlic knots are kind of ridiculously greasy. They leak through the cardboard clamshell. There is a pool, a deep pool, of oil at the bottom of the container. I tried dipping a knot in it. It doesn't have much flavor. It looks like melted garlic butter, but has the no-flavor of a vegetable oil or something like that, with garlic thrown in. If you want oily garlic bread, this is for you. Like the pizza, I didn't hate it, but it's not something I think I'd order often.

The knots themselves are nicely-flavored, with the taste of garlic and parmesan cheese. There's plenty of parmesan on them. They are a tad on the tough-to-chew side. They are served with a warm marinara sauce that is really quite good. I didn't really enjoy dipping one in the oil, but the marinara was wonderful. I do...

I was craving a good meal, and had been intrigued by all the claims that this was an amazing place for a good quality pizza.

My order was a side of garlic knots, a side of calimari, and a large pizza. The garlic knots were decent, minus the pool of butter that soaked through the boxes they put them in. For the life of me I can't figure out why places pool in the butter and garlic into cardboard/paper boxes, and expect everything to just be okay. Use plastic, save people from having a mess all over their car and tables. Or better yet, just don't have an inch of butter and garlic in a box of bread ... Aside from the overly soggy ones, the ones on top were fairly decent. They are VERY heavy on the garlic, so if you don't like that, steer clear. I love garlic though, so these were decent in my opinion.

After salvaging what I could from the garlic knots, I moved onto the calamari. This is quite possiblely one of the worst calamaris I've ever had, not just in the 757, but anywhere. The breading on them was an absolutely horrid flavor, and would have been better if just cooked in straight motor oil. The consistency of the squid itself was similar to a car tire. In an attempt to make it palatable I pulled off the breading on most of the pieces, but was left with just a bland, flavorless chew toy that even my cat and neighbors dog just sniffed and walked away from. Of course the saving grace for any terrible item could be the sauce! At last I had a way to recover this disaster. Vinny's trusty..... Pizza sauce. They didn't even try to go with this is marinara, just... Pizza sauce. Completely the wrong pairing to go with this dish, and it gave me no joy trying to eat these. After about 10 pieces or so, I thought I might actually throw up from eating them.

So, were all the positive reviews I heard about their pizza being so great, actually true?

It was time to move into the only thing I've heard about this place being good, and uncover the truth! Pizza!

I won't beat around the bush on this. The pizza was not good. The crust was dry, and tasted a bit burnt, so if you like pizza pizza crust that literally makes a snapping noise when you try to break the crust in your hands, and the faint taste of smoke and char, this is the place for you!

Do yourself a favor, save some money and eat at Anna's for an Italian pizza, or treat your taste buds to an exhilarating experience with Mellow Mushroom. Those places know how to cook the food they serve, and they cook it well.

I will never be eating at Vinny's again, as the quality was horrendous, the food was terrible, and the price just didn't justify something that even animals...

Vinny's Pizza & Pasta was packed full as usual on a Friday evening just past 6pm. Families to couples filled the tables with smiles and laughter as teenagers clicked away on their phones or tablets. The pie makers have the oven doors opening for in and out dishes twice a minute as patrons pay their tabs at the register. The 3-4 TV's have soccer games rolling and tables are turning over more quickly than expected. The clientele is courteous to one another and the mens room is always clean. I expect the same goes for the ladies. The owner makes his rounds in speaking to many loyal customers regardless of how crazy busy things may be.

A table for 9 began with greek salads for each person and the house dressing delivers as do the consistent fresh greens and produce. Garlic knots and rolls held us over until the pasta dishes arrived such as chicken parmigiana (enough for 2 every time) and 3 soups to choose from, the minestrone was good (I added a little salt), the vodka sauce and spaghetti dishes disappeared quickly, I got a large green pepper & onion pizza so I could take some home and if you can believe it desert was ordered and thoroughly enjoyed.....chocolate and yellow cake thing (don't recall name) and the cannoli's were awesome. The beer on tap is a wonderful selection from light to dark and reasonably priced. We had it by the pitcher with DB Vienna Lager, my favorite.

The wait staff teams together like a family often using a head nod to shift needs or performance. It was spot on and just what every town across America needs and loves.

Thanks Team Vinny's - you guys...