La Fontana Pizzeria

Reviews

Name: Erika Williams

Occupation: Manager Promotions and Marketing

Lives In: Coral Springs

Restaurant Pick: La Fontana

Reviewed: La Fontana

Authentic Italian Cuisine right in the heart of Coral Springs…The restaurant takes you on a food journey of Italy. From the Limoncello all the way to the Nutellino (which by the way is a gift from God). This restaurant has fresh ingredients that will make your taste buds sing!!!!!

I had two appetizers (shared with friend): Melanzane Alla Parmigiana (baked eggplant layered with parmesan cheese, mozzarella and tomato sauce. Absolutely delicious. Sauce was not too heavy, very well-seasoned and eggplant was thinly sliced and cooked well). Highly recommend. Second Appetizer was Miele & Brie (melted brie cheese bathed in honey with walnuts and a touch of garlic). This dish is magical. Once you slice the brie, it comes oozing out. Comes with bread and you must make sure every bite has cheese, some honey, and a walnut. Explosion of flavors, sweet and savory with the crunch of the walnut that makes this appetizer so satisfying.

My Entrée was Risotto with Seafood (clams, mussels, shrimps and scallops). Delicious. Portions are huge. Seafood not overcooked. For dessert, Nutellino – Nutella wrapped in pizza dough, cooked in a wood oven, then topped with powdered sugar, drizzle of chocolate and homemade vanilla gelato. Oh my goodness. ANYONE who loves nutella needs to get this dish! When you slice the dough, the hot nutella comes oozing out and combines with the homemade gelato. Heaven on earth. My only recommendation is that they serve with a spoon so that you can get all that delicious soupiness (I know I made that word up) when the nutella melts the gelato.

Name: Stephanie Bennett

Occupation: University Professor

Lives In: West Palm Beach

Restaurant Pick: Oli’s Fashion Cuisine

Reviewed: La Fontana

Parking was no problem because there’s so much room at the Walk in Coral Springs. Outside was a keyboard player singing Italian songs like ‘Quando Quando Quando’ and numerous diners seated in front of a fantastic fountain, all seeming to have an enjoyable time. When we arrived, a waitress came immediately to greet us and asked where we’d like to be seated. We chose inside because it was warm evening, but even inside there was a full view of the lovely fountains. The inside restaurant is small – only twelve tables, but outside there seemed to be at least twice that many. It was nicely casual inside, but would have been more comfortable had the wooden tables been covered with table cloths. The ambiance was festive and family-friendly; it had a nice, old-world feel of authenticity. When we finally got our bread, it was worth waiting for. It was served piping hot and drizzled with pesto – so tasty! We thought this was a good predictor of what was to come. Unfortunately, there were a few problems. The waiter was sweet but didn’t seem to know the menu very well. We had to wait at least 10 to 15 minutes before we could order and it took a long time for the bread to get to the table. However, the menu was fun to discover. It was full of Italian favorites along with some interesting and unique specialties. I was surprised that the meatballs were so good. Growing up Italian we make our own meatballs and wouldn’t dream of ordering them out, but they came with the grill and they were just fabulous. I would go again and give La Fontana another try. It was worth it.

Name: Michael Shanley

Occupation: Family Needs Counselor

Lives In: Lake Worth

Restaurant Pick: Tacos al Carbon

Reviewed: La Fontana

We went to dinner early on a Saturday night with my wife and 7 year old grandson. The place was disjointed with a small main room, a takeout counter where the brick oven is located and a patio area shared with 2 other restaurants.

The meal started very promising with nice brick-oven flat garlic bread. My wife and I were excited and anticipating more of the same. We order my wife’s favorite appetizer, calamari fritti. The marinara sauce was like ketchup, and not even Heinz. When it came to the table it was lukewarm at best. It may have been a pre-breaded frozen product, all the same size and consistency of a breaded rubber band (no tentacles) and was presented on a platter shaped like a fish. I mention that because every course we ordered came on a fish shaped platter, which didn’t make sense when the chicken marsala came out.

Our entrees were spaghetti and meatball for my grandson, paperdella with porcini mushrooms and shrimp, and chicken marsala with spinach and tortellini. The spaghetti and meatball was in the same ketchup-based sauce and 2 flavorless meatballs. I’m of Irish descent but I know good Italian. The meatball may have been pre-package as well. My seven year old didn’t enjoy at all.

Our other entrees included papperdella with porcini mushroom and shrimp, which had very little cream sauce. The mushrooms I think came out of a jar and the 4 or 5 shrimp were the size of ones you would find in fried rice from a Chinese joint. Very low quality. The chicken marsala would have been better if cooked in the brick oven and served HOT. My Italian friends always called it Gravy instead of sauce. This sauce was light in color, taste and had a small amount on the fish shaped platter. The spinach reminded me of the greens that the calamari sat in and the tortellini was an afterthought.

The heat generated by the brick oven in the next room was evident in how hot the room was. There was a party of 14 on the other side of the room and I overheard 2 requests for the a/c to be turned down. When their food started coming out many were in a metal hot box placed on the empty table between the party and ourselves. I had to laugh because this just added heat to the room. After dinner my wife suggested I look at the brick oven room.

When entering the room the front door is left open the entire time we are there. If I had seen this area before we ate, I probably would not have eaten there. The music started at 6:30pm, tacky. On our way out we were asked by a panhandler for money. We explained we had no cash.

Restaurant Information

Location: 2890 N University Dr. Coral Springs, FL 33065
Parking: Large free parking
Phone: 954-575-5502
Website:www.lafontanapizzeria.com
Restaurant Owners: Toni and Spartak Tare
Executive Chef: Toni Tare
Pastry Chef: N/A

Type of Cuisine: Authentic North Italy
Signature Dishes: Ferrara Pizza, Nutellino
Vegetarian Options: yes
Alcohol Served: Wine
Corkage Fee: $10.00
Bottle Limit: none

Restaurant Hours:
Monday – 11am-11pm
Tuesday – 11am-11pm
Wednesday – 11am-11pm
Thursday – 11am-11pm
Friday – 11am-11pm
Saturday – 11am-11pm
Sunday – 11am-11pm

Meals Served: Lunch and Dinner
Prix Fix Menu: N/A
Take-Out: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Average Dinner Price Range (per person, full meal, tax, 20% gratuity, w/o alcohol): $20-$30
Average Lunch Price Range (per person, full meal, tax, 20% gratuity, w/o alcohol): $10-$15
Payment Options: do you accept credit cards and if so, which ones? All
Accept Reservations: Yes
Need Reservations: Friday- Saturday
How far in advance do you require reservations be made: same day

Accommodations for Children: yes
Dining Style: Casual
Disabled Access: Yes
Restaurant Size: 50 inside 80 outside
Accommodate Groups: Yes