July 1, 2005

Giorgio’s Italian Food & Pizzeria

A tasty neighborhood staple that continues to impress

By Carol Rosen
Editor

Giorgio’s Italian Food & Pizzeria opened on Foxworthy Avenue in the Willow Glen/Cambrian Park area in 1968 and has been satisfying customers ever since.

Former Willow Glen inhabitants who now live in Boulder, Colo., Anna Maria Begeman and Michael Morter, enjoy a leisurely lunch with their son Anthony Morter, his wife Leah and their 17-month-old grandchild Madison. Anna Maria says they always eat at Giorgios when they come to visit. “This was our favorite pizza restaurant when we lived here,” she said.

The family-friendly restaurant with its tasty Italian treats is still running strong although it’s now part of a locally owned chain that includes Frankie, Johnnie & Luigi Too! in Mountain View Dublin, Yountville and San Jose, New York Style Sausage Company in Sunnyvale and a second Giorgios in Milpitas.

Obviously, success for any restaurant means good food, and Giorgios has that in spades. But it also has a couple of bonuses that make it a great place for any neighborhood, especially one as family-oriented as Willow Glen.

Giorgios, which is located at the FoxworthyPlaza Shopping Center at Foxworthy and Cherry avenues, is a family-friendly restaurant. It’s a great place for singles, couples, but it’s especially fun for families with children. Second, its prices are also family-friendly, which is totally not astronomical as are many Italian restaurants with excellent food.

The place is typically packed at night, although Mondays and Tuesdays are less crowded than the rest of the week, said Jayme Kumagai, who has worked at the restaurant for 6 1/2 years. In addition, the chef allows customers to exchange sauces for olive oil and garlic or will make things from the 1986 menu if that’s what a customer wants.
“The customer is king,” added Kumagai.

The menu is wide and varied and offers signature dishes along with typical Italian pasta, appetizers, salads, favorites and pizza and calzone. Desserts are VERY special, but we’ll get to those later. Giorgios also offers a full menu of hot and cold party trays in addition to desserts. Its serving staff is also top grade. Servers are available to provide suggestions and any help you might need, but don’t hover over your table and question whether everything is OK every five minutes.

Anna Maria Begemann and Michael Morter from Boulder, Colo., were visiting their son, Anthony Morter, his wife Leah and their grandchild 17-month-old Madison Morter. “We used to eat here all the time, but now we live in Boulder,” said Anna Maria. “This was our favorite pizza restaurant when we lived here.”

The family was taking a leisurely lunch at Giorgios. They like the friendly service and the fact that no one pushes them to get out. “We especially like the food, “ said Leah.

Giorgios is known for its signature dishes. They have a wonderful salad called Caesar’s Fantasy, which is a traditional Caesar salad with calamata olives, crumbled gorgonzola and roasted walnuts that is totally divine. Entrées include such succulent suppers as Rigatoni e Spinaci, Mostacioli di Bari, Fetticine Prawns Portofino, Cappellini Pomodori and Linguini Aglio Olio.

Other features include New York-style sausages and several new items such as chicken cacciatore. Giorgio’s also offers a family style dinner that can serve up to eight people for about $40. It includes one-half gallon of house salad, one-half gallon of spaghetti or rigatoni Bolognese, a medium cheese pizza, a whole BBQ chicken and a half of a loaf of bread.

Pizzas come in three sizes; small is 12 inches, medium is 14 inches and large is 16 inches. There’s a New York-style and a four-cheese as well as a fresh tomato, garlic and basil. There are six other special pizzas that include a Hawaiian Delight, with a special Italian sausage, mushrooms, pepperoni and salami and Luigi’s treat of sausage, mushroom, bell pepper and onions. In addition, there’s a vegetarian that includes artichoke hearts and Johnnie’s Favorite, with pesto, roast chicken, roast red bell pepper, artichokes, black olives, bruschetta tomatoes, ricotta and mozzarella.

If that’s not enough, you can make your own pizza with any of the 24 toppings they offer to go on a basic mozzarella pie. Customers who would like extra sauce, dough or fresh parsley get them at no extra charge. The restaurant also offers three different calzones, which some people think of as a pizza sandwich. These include Italian sausage with spinach, ricotta and fontina; roasted chicken, roasted red pepper and pesto and a vegetarian with spinach, onion, zucchini, mushroom, red bell pepper, black olive, mozzarella and fresh tomato.

If you can, you should leave room for dessert. Five are listed on the menu. My favorite, being a chocolate lover, is Mo Cioccolata. It’s an Oreo cookie crust filled with a creamy chocolate moose-like filling that’s topped with chocolate fudge. Tiramisu comes a close second—no chocolate—with its light texture, it’s almost like eating tasty air. Also available is a scrumptious amaretto cake, wild strawberry tart and New York cheesecake.

Prices are quite reasonable. Antipasti and salads are in the $4.50 to $6 range with a couple of exceptions. Fried calamari is $7.95, Antipasto for two is $11.50 and antipasto salad, which serves two to four people, is $12.95. Pasta ranges from $7.95 to $13.50 for Mostacioli di Bari with filet mignon and mushrooms.

House favorites including chicken, veal and shrimp as well as eggplant, lamb and salmon are in the same range. Pizzas run from $9.50 for a small cheese pie to $21.50 for a large Frank’s Fiasco. Additional toppings range from 75 cents to $2. Dessert prices also are reasonable. Tiramisu and Mo’ Cioccolata each are $4.95 while the other three are $3.95.

All food is available for takeout.

Giorigo’s also offers a full catering service that includes hot and cold party trays as well as desserts. Each savory tray feeds about 20 people with prices ranging from $7.95 for a loaf of garlic bread to about $60 for chicken cacciatore.

Two are priced higher—a full tray of veal scallopini marsala runs $95 and Italian sausage with peppers is $75. Cold trays run $24 to $40 for salads, fruits, relishes and cheeses up to $60 for a meat and cheese combo trays. Desserts run $40 to $45 and each to feed 12 to 16, while a full tray of tiramisu, which feeds 30 people, is $75.

Giorgios is located at 1445 Foxworthy Ave. in the Foxworthy Plaza Shopping Center. The restaurant is open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, visit www.giorgiossanjose.com or call (408) 264.5781.