Giovanni's - Lake Mary

Myself and an old friend went to this establishment on his recommendation. On the menu, they had a classic calzone, a vegetarian calzone, and something called the "Special" calzone. I, of course, went with the special calzone - the price of which was $12.99. When it arrived, I saw that it was a large calzone, not medium large as usual, but just flat large. The calzone was oven baked in a regular oven. The dough was burnt, and crispy. This turned out to be my least favorite part of the dish, because it flaked away as you tried to cut it and burnt (or overdone) dough is always chewy. However, the insides of the pocket were very good. Mr. Giovanni threw in everything and the kitchen sink. It had pepperoni, meatball, ham, mushrooms, green peppers, onion, sausage, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Usually, when we see this many ingredients in a calzone, we don't get the ricotta. This time, we did. All of these standard pizza-topping ingredients came together to form a very delicious medley. The calzone was cooked quite nicely inside. This lends to my theory about the difficulty of cooking a good calzone. Had the outside not been burnt, the insides may not have reached sufficient temperature to cook well. Calzones are hard because they are a trade-off in many ways. Unfortunately, the dough and the price detracted quite heavily from the overall quality of it, leaving me only to be able to score it as high as a C+. I wouldn't go here and get it again, but if I found myself back at Giovanni's in an unplanned way, I might be interested to try the other calzone.

Italian Pizza Kitchen – Van Ness Area – Washington, D.C.

I was excited for this place. Two separate people I know recommended this location to me as a great place for calzones in Washington D.C. Living in Virginia, I don’t get the opportunity to get into the city very often, but I made the trip out for this one. The restaurant is a cozy corner café. Upon entry, me and my friends were seated and placed our orders. The food arrived after about 15 minutes, all three of us ordering a calzone to share. They ordered the Italian Calzone, and I ordered the Napoletana. All the calzones ran $12.95, no matter which version was chosen. I went with the Ham calzone so I could establish a baseline, since the menu boasted ricotta cheese. When it arrived, I noticed that it was the common size of medium-large, which put me at ease. Upon the first bite, I would describe the dough as fluffy, the calzone appeared to be baked in a regular oven. The outside was crisp and well timed. The dough itself wasn’t sweet, nor was it sour. It was regular dough. The presentation of the dish was also one of the best I’ve seen. The chef opted for the risky striations cut into the top of the calzone for visual effect. An aged parmesan was liberally sprinkled over the top. I knew it was a higher quality cheese because its strong concentrated flavor took over a lot of the dish in the parts that it touched. Inside was a nice low-moisture mozzarella with a medium quality ricotta cheese, curdy and seasoned with basil pocketed towards the front. The ham that was used appeared to be a standard pizza topping style ham, cut in quarter inch thick strips and without heavy curing. The cheese inside was not all the way congealed due to the chef paying attention to the dough as the indicator of readiness. This is often the struggle with calzones, cook the dough perfectly and the insides haven’t gotten hot enough to cook correctly, or cook the inside correctly and risk a burnt crust on your dough. Some chefs seem to cut the striations in the top of the pocket in order to allow the hot convection air to cook the insides as well as the outside, but the risk there is that, while eating the calzone, it loses its heat too quickly and becomes cold halfway through. The calzone did suffer from this common issue. However, the marinara sauce was fantastic; earthy, with a hint of spice, albeit only given in a very small carafe. Overall, I enjoyed the calzone. I had a bite of my friend’s Italian calzone and, I think that if I visit again, I might end up ordering that one. I score this Calzone as a B- due to the price for the issues present with it. Presentation was great, timing was great, a few issues with the flavor and quality of the ingredients, but overall not just average.

Mamma Lucia – Inside Fair City Mall – Fairfax, VA (Round 2)

I’m making a recantation of my previous score at this place. I was ready for the lower quality of the calzone but, for the price, it would have been worth it. However, this calzone was terrible. It was overly doughy, yet elastic and hard to cut with the plastic utensils that were given. The calzone was heated to such a degree that the cheese was liquefied and poured completely out onto the plate when the calzone was cut. The heat melted the plastic fork I was using to eat it. I would describe this calzone as a “gumbo” of mostly cheese and pieces of other unidentifiable ingredients, giving the dish just a hint of “meat flavor”. It was a thoroughly dissatisfying eat the second time around. I am rescoring this calzone as a D-, because it wasn’t as bad as I remember Paisano’s being, but probably the second worst calzone I’ve had to-date. The price remained the same at $7.49.

King’s NY Pizza – Fairfax, VA

This was probably the fourth time I’ve been to this place, but the first time I remember to capture pictures of it. Furthermore, it has probably been about 7 months since I had been here last. I ordered the Ham Calzone again, because I knew it was the classic. When getting back on the horse, one needs to re-establish the baseline. I remembered the Ham Calzone being one of the best I ever had before, and I wasn’t disappointed the second time. I have to admit though, it felt different. The dough was baked quite heavily, very slightly on the tough side but delicious. The outside was crispy and sweet. The dish was served with a very thin marinara which went quickly due it the amount and how much the bread soaked it in. The ricotta used in the pocket was probably some of the best I’ve had so far, with some kind of Italian herb mixed in and sweetened. The ham was cured and salty which mixed together delightfully with the sweetness of the cheese. I believe the difference was how the dough was made and the size of the Calzone. The price of the dish remains to be $9.00 flat, which is still a good deal, but less of one due to the reduced size of the Calzone. I’m adjusting my previous score to a B-, due to the changes. Despite this slightly lower score, it was still quite good and I’ll probably go back again in the future.

Santini’s NY Deli – Fairfax, VA

If any calzone I’ve eaten so far has taught me anything, it was this one. This one, had to have been the most average calzone I’ve eaten so far. Average tasting dough, average price ($9.95), average taste. There were many pros and cons to this one, for example: The dough was cooked well on the top, but it was very crispy on the bottom making it hard to completely cut through. The menu advertised the Calzone I ordered, which was the “Deli” Calzone, with ricotta cheese – but there was none to be found in it. The cheese was not thoroughly melted as I have described in other postings, but not bad. I suppose, in a headline, what this dish should be called is “Fantastic Pepperoni and Ham inside of some average tasting bread and cheese”. Being a deli, I shouldn’t have expected any less of the meats, they were great. High quality pepperoni oozing with that spicy oil they have. The ham was salty, but not too salty. The meal was served with the biggest bowl of marinara sauce I’ve had so far, except it tasted canned. Like they poured half of a can of marinara sauce in a bowl and gave it to me. The highs of this meal: the meat, the amount of marinara, the size of the calzone (medium-large) were matched by the lows of the meal: no ricotta as advertised, quality of the sauce, taste of every other part of it. They did serve the meal with a steak knife and a metal fork which is always helpful. I give this Calzone a very, very middle of the road C.

Pie-tanza – Arlington, VA

After finding this place online, I knew that it might be slightly more upscale than what I have generally been used to. The price on the internet, and even the menu, wasn’t at all as it is in the store. Online, it appeared that there were a few “pre-built” options for a Calzone, which I generally choose. Many restaurants will allow you to “build your own” calzone, or at least add ingredients for an extra fee. However, Pie-tanza’s whole angle on Calzones is to build your own. Upon looking at the menu, there didn’t appear to be any pre-built options but, for $12.79, I was allowed to choose up to three fillings from the very large array of ingredients they had. The dough and the mozzarella are standard, so I chose domestic mushrooms, Italian sausage, and ricotta cheese. It didn’t take them long to make it. There was a giant wood-fire oven in the center of the restaurant, but it didn’t appear that they used this to make my calzone. They may have, and I was just not paying attention. The calzone was in the medium-large range as far as size goes, and it was served with a small carafe of marinara sauce that was delicious. I could describe the marinara as “earthy”. It had a lot of basil flavor and chunks of tomato in it. Suffice to say it went pretty quickly. As I am learning, a standard difference between Calzones and Strombolis are that a Calzone tends to have more dough. This was definitely the case here. The calzone had a “rolled” edge in a classic fashion, which made a lot of bread to eat around in order to get to the pocket. The dough was literally perfect. I may have had dough that I liked more because of its sweetness or texture, but this dough was, technically speaking, perfect in every way. It was not overly sweet or unsweet. It was cooked to perfection all the way through, it was both thin and crispy but had enough volume that it maintained a level of softness. The ricotta used in the pocket was a creamy high-quality cheese. The mushrooms tasted like canned ones that had been cooked (to be expected), the mozzarella seemed to not be a low-moisture kind. There was a lot of moisture in the pocket. I didn’t seem to get a whole lot of the Italian sausage that I asked for, and it was “wet” inside the middle. The wetness of the sausage and the mozzarella was not overbearing, but it did leave the bottom of the dough ever-so-slightly soggy, as described about other Calzones on this blog. All in all, this was a very good Calzone. I would score this one a B+, although it’s probably due for an A- as far as flavor goes, but the high price of almost $13 brings the score down because of the bready-ness of it and the wetness of the fillings.

Casa D’ Mama Pizzeria – Annandale, VA

Another Google maps based on vicinity find. But boy am I sure glad I found this place. It’s located in a shopping center right off of a major road, but one would kind of describe it more like a strip-mall. It’s kind of a sad affair to venture here, the area looks as if it might be closed and bought out by a developer sometime in the near future and the businesses may be struggling. This is confirmed by the signage presented (jokingly) by the establishment that reads “Please stop in so that we can both eat”. Inside of the place, it’s decorated in a vintage 80’s Italian art-deco style but in a building that looks like it was built in the 60’s or 70’s. It was easy to order and find the calzones, to which they have a plentiful selection along with strombolis. I was very tempted, based off of interview reviews, to order the Steak and Cheese stromboli but, with my last experience at Tony’s in Manassas, I decided that I should always stick with the calzone first and foremost. I chose the “Calzone”, or regular as I was informed by the cashier, for $8.99. I got my diet coke and waited for about 15 minutes for it to arrive, a normal time. I was the only patron who had ordered food at that particular moment and I could smell my calzone baking. Oh it smelled delicious! When it came, I saw that overall, in size, I would describe it as “medium” but it was so plump that I have to raise this observation to “medium large”. Upon first cut I noticed that the dough was thin and flaky on the outside, browned to a hardened shell. The filling went all the way to the edges of the dough, which is always a wonderful thing. The marinara sauce provided was especially good, flavored with strong Italian seasoning. After tasting the dough, I would almost describe it as being “pretzeled”. If there were salt on it, I would have sworn it was a pretzel. This added a truly interesting dynamic to the meal. There was also a healthy amount of ricotta in it, which is always welcome by my palate, and a goodly amount of mozzarella. The mozzarella was not congealed all the way and, at the bottom of the pocket, could still be seen in its shredded form. Surprisingly, this did not diminish from the delicious flavor and only made it taste better! The pocket was crammed full of ham. Some restaurants only sprinkle in slices of chopped up ham, but this place was very liberal with it. The ham had a wonderful smoky and sweet flavor. It was a very wet-ham which caused the bottom of the calzone to be moist with meat juice. This took away from the dough a little bit, because it was slightly soggy on the bottom, running across my plate. The combination of this flavored ham, the ricotta, the uncongealed mozzarella, and the awesome dough dipped in the heavily seasoned marinara sauce made it clear that this was one unique calzone. I loved it! The size, the price, and the uniqueness of this calzone make me give it the most solid B+ I have given to date. I will definitely be stopping back in again in the future to try that steak and cheese stromboli though.

Tony’s Pizzeria – Manassas, VA

I went here on a recommendation from a friend’s wife’s coworker. The webpage of the establishment makes it look like a five star restaurant. Upon arrival, I realized that it was in a strip-mall in the middle of a busy city. Now, looks don’t usually have any correlation with the taste, because good taste can come from anywhere. Upon entering, the restaurant’s fare was displayed wonderfully for all to see in multi-level glass casing. This turned out to be an awesome answer to my question. The menu board showed that Tony’s offered both calzones and strombolis. I asked the clerk what the difference was, and he said that calzone’s were more “doughy” and contained ricotta in them as well as mozzarella, whereas the strombolis had more filling and less dough and only mozzarella. I saw a chicken and broccoli stromboli and, counting both a calzone and a stromboli as the same, I went ahead and ordered it. The price came out to only $5.75 for this stromboli, and I would classify it as a medium size, maybe even slightly larger! When it arrived, I dug in and the first thing I noticed was that it was watery. They did not drain the water from the chicken or the steamed broccoli so there was a “soup” going on inside of the dough. There was very little mozzarella, only enough to bind the broccoli and chicken together. The chicken and the broccoli were not seasoned with anything, just cooked in their own juices. The dish was largely without flavor and strange to eat because the dough was very nicely done (and beautifully done in a braiding pattern) on the outside, but mushy on the inside. This was one time I fully regretted not getting the ham and pepperoni calzone. Suffice to say, I did not enjoy my food at Tony’s and, due to the distance, I probably won’t be back again. But it’s hard to argue with that price and the pizza and bruschetta looked good, so there’s a very high chance that I ordered the one thing that they couldn’t make very well. I give this dish a D+ because it was not very good, but it was soooo cheap.

Vinny’s Italian Grill and Pizzeria – Lorton, VA

I would describe this place as having an old country charm, except everything in it is Italian. I’m not sure quite how they pulled this off. Perhaps it was the two tables of “good ol’ boys” laughing and joking around in one corner, the table with the elderly couple in the other corner, a family with kids at yet a different table. The checkerboard tablecloths with cans of marinara sauce on racks for artistic effect. Maybe the biggest factor was the drive out to the restaurant from the rest of northern Virginia, one that is tree-lined and lonely, making a person feel as if they are on a country back road. Anyways, I knew that I was coming for their calzone and I chose their “Bellybuster”. This one carries a $9.99 price tag, but it is what I would call “medium-large”. Not as big as some of the other ones I’ve had but still more than enough for the average person to finish in one sitting. In this case, the price really justified the size of what you were getting. It didn’t take too long, and when the calzone arrived, it was a rectangle! Only Ledo’s was ever bold enough to make a square calzone before. Not that this means anything in particular, but it’s just interesting to look at. This calzone’s crust was both fluffy and crispy, it was brushed in butter which gave the outside a nice bubbled crust. The dough was sweet, but not too sweet. The guts of the dish contained sautéed mushrooms, mozzarella, green peppers, ground chuck, pepperoni, and onions. The vegetables were undercooked so that they were crispy and retained a lot of their aromatic properties. The mushrooms were sautéed perfectly. The pepperoni used was average, and had a decent amount of flavor. The ground chuck was important here because some other restaurants that included hamburger meat inside of their calzone didn’t pull it off quite right. This meat was actually seasoned, and you could pick out this flavor from the other flavors. It did not have a gamey taste to it. The dish was served with a nice wide bowl of marinara sauce, which tasted good but like it was a store bought sauce.  The waitress was a nice Korean lady which added to the oddness of my Floridian country experience, stepping into a restaurant that had all of the feel of a place I might have experienced back home but with a few different twists. If you look close enough, things at Vinny’s seem one way, but slightly twisted. I like it, and I will definitely be stopping in again if I’m ever out that way. I give this calzone an A- because it was done technically perfect, but lacked just an ever so slight amount of that quality that you would get from a high-end gourmet restaurant. With the first bite, you could tell it was cooked by a pizza place. Whether you mind that, or not, is all a matter of preference.

Stone Hot Pizza – Alexandria, VA

I found this establishment on Google maps, searching the areas I had already haunted for new blood. I chose this restaurant because their menu offered five different types of calzone with the option to make your own. This tells me that they take their calzone seriously and don’t just offer it as an afterthought. These places are getting farther and farther away from my house so it took me a little while to get there. When I did, the place was empty. People would stop in periodically and pick up a pizza they ordered over the phone. I ordered the Superano calzone that boasted Mushrooms, Italian sausage, peppers, onion, and pepperoni. The cost for this calzone was $10.95. It did not take it very long to arrive, less than ten minutes. During my wait, two Afghani women walked in to order sandwiches. Things got loud behind the counter with a man I did not previously see. I overheard who I understood to be the owner saying “You are from Afghanistan right?” The women confirmed and the man said he was from Iran. I enjoyed their exchange because it started off in English and ended in Arabic. The man who seemed to be shouting happily was the one to deliver my calzone. I suddenly realized that the entire establishment was run by Middle Eastern people. The thing about Stone Hot Pizza is that they actually have a stone oven which they cook the pizza in. the calzone I was served had a thin and crispy crust, slightly burned in spots because of the stone oven. The dough that was used was their pizza dough, covered in cornmeal. The calzone was large. Noticeably larger than the usual calzones I am served. The thing that really makes this dish is all the toppings that are packed into the pocket. Were there mushrooms? Oh yes, and they were sautéed and delicious. Were there peppers? You betcha, and they were cooked to keep their flavor and crunchy. Pepperoni? Very high quality stuff. Onions? Slightly undercooked so they were aromatic and crunchy. The calzone also had ricotta cheese in a small amount and mozzarella. One could taste the stone oven that had cooked it. The dish was served with a side of refrigerated marinara that was just alright. The calzone overall was not the best I ever had, but it was very very good. This time, the price was even justified by the size. Something about this calzone was different though, it tasted more… Mediterranean. Like a gyro, and not like an Italian made it. No single flavor overpowered the dish as a whole. It was large enough that it got cold while I was eating it because it took me so long to finish. I score this Calzone a B+ because the price was good for the amount of food, all the flavors were excellent, and the stone oven gave the whole thing a unique flavor. 

Bertucci’s – Springfield, VA

This place did not have a stellar rating on Google, I think it came in at around 3.8 out of 5. Despite the average judgment passed against it, I was in the area when I decided that I wanted another calzone. The menu paints the establishment as one that strives for originality. I had only once before seen a calzone that contained meatballs, especially ones that were supposedly handmade. The restaurant itself is a little difficult to get to since it is right near the interstate, next to a mall. Traffic was quite heavy.  I went after around 1p.m. in the afternoon, and the place was not busy. I was seated and my hostess came very promptly with freshly cooked bread and oil. This bread was fantastic, and I could only contain my excitement for the calzone. I ordered the Poplette Calzone, which contains handmade meatballs and Pecorino, Romano, Ricotta, and Mozzarella cheese with a little of what they call “pomodoro sauce”. The calzone came in a reasonable about of time, about 15 minutes, and my first impression was that it was quite small for the price. It runs $12.29. At this price, I expected to see a calzone that rivaled the one at Delia’s or Ovvio. This calzone, however, was about as standard of a medium size as one could expect. Eating calzones is always an adventure and, unless you’ve been to the restaurant before, you never know what size, shape, or quality of contents you’re going to get. At this point, price doesn’t seem to be an indicator for any of those things. The calzone was one of the most standard shapes I’ve ever seen. It looked like the epitome of what a calzone is expected to look like, with its half-moon shape and rolled over edges. The meal was served with a larger saucer of the pomodoro sauce for dipping, and a steak knife. I have come to appreciate the inclusion of steak knives, since calzones can be hard to cut through with a standard butter knife. The first thing I noticed was that the dough was perfect. It was soft and fluffy, yet baked to the perfect crisp on the outside. The dough in this calzone was everything I expected after having eaten their appetizer bread. One thing is for certain, Bertucci’s is good at making bread. Once I got to the innards of the calzone, I opened it up and noticed what was inside. The meatballs were very small, clearly handmade. They still had a very slight “gamey” taste to them because they used a hamburger meat to prepare them. The ricotta was of the smooth and creamy kind, almost like a marscapone cheese and not the curd-ish kind. Furthermore, it was still a little cold. I could not distinguish the other cheeses, Pecorino, Romano, and mozzarella. It all just tasted like a low-moisture, shredded, mozzarella to me. Furthermore, it did not seem that the calzone was baked long enough for the cheese to congeal with itself, and I knew the cheese came shredded because I could feel the individual shreds of the cheese in my mouth. Do not get me wrong, this calzone was not undercooked. Like I said before, the dough was excellent. However, the inner ingredients did not come together on the level of standard that the dough set. I would rate this calzone as a strong C+ because of its delicious bread, but high price for the size and the just “okayness” of its guts. I did like that they included some of the standard elements I’ve come to love in a calzone, but it wasn’t enough for me to want to go back for another one.

Delia’s Pizzeria and Grill – Springfield, VA

Another one I found on Google Maps and decided to try on a whim. When I came in here, I was asked “How can I help you” once again by the host – this never fails to throw me for a loop as to what the proper response should be. I sat myself and asked immediately for the “Traditional Calzone”, Anyways, the waitress was very nice and attentive to the fact that it took about 20 minutes to make the calzone. When it arrived, I realized that this might win the award for the biggest calzone that I have eaten thus far. It was as large, if not larger than, the calzone from Ovvio Osteria. The price tag on this one was $10.50, which was not bad at all for a calzone of such a substantial size. The menu boasts the calzone with having mozzarella, pepperoni, ricotta, and sausage. In reality, it only had three of the four with the ricotta notably missing. This was unfortunate because ricotta cheese is one of my more liked ingredients in a calzone, even though I’ve been informed that it’s not very authentic Italian. Anyways, the calzone was very good, the pepperoni was of a very high quality and contained a lot of flavorful oils. The sausage, like most pizza places was bland in nature, and more for adding a consistency and texture to dishes. The mozzarella was, I believe, of a low-moisture type. The kind that gets put on New York style pizza and gets chewy when it cools down. The dough that contained all of these ingredients was handmade. It wasn’t as sweet as most of the calzone dough I’m used to, and I didn’t enjoy it as much as other doughs. It wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the dough at Paisano’s, but it ranked closer to that than not. I had a very hard time finishing this calzone because of its size. I would rate this one at a solid B. No plus or minus. The value was extremely good, the dough and the lack of advertised ricotta were not so good. The pepperoni was great, and the cheese was alright until it cooled off. The waitress kindly offered marinara on the side, which was tasty in its own right.

Flippin Pizza - Fairfax, VA

Another google maps search resulted in this pizza parlor that I wasn’t previously aware of. When I entered the restaurant, it was clearly part of a small chain that is trying to modernize and increase its brand recognition. I don’t understand what the fascination for the word “flip” is supposed to be in the name, since almost all pizza places that hand-toss their dough flip it at some point. Perhaps there is something different that the company does while making the pizza. Regardless, I chose to order their Brooklyn Calzone. I noticed that the pizza was definitely a “New York” style, flat with lots of cheese and a thin sauce. The calzone came in two sizes, a small and a large. The small one was incredibly small… literally the smallest calzone I’ve ever seen. It could fit in the palm of my hand. The prices ran $8.50 for a small one and $13.50 for the large. The bigger one, which I chose because I knew I’d still be hungry otherwise, I had to wait to see since they did not have a medium on display. When it arrived only 10 minutes later, I noticed that it was about a standard medium size, according to my personal opinions as I have been rating calzones in this log. One of the other things that I noticed was that, for three guys working there who appeared to be super busy, this calzone was presented beautifully. I think this might be been the “best looking” calzone I’ve eaten so far. It was pre-sliced for me into three sections, had artisanal air-pockets cut into it for the baking process, and it was garnished extremely well. It was served with a small cup of marinara sauce, which was pre-prepared before the day as it was in a Dixie cup with a lid and was cold. The Brooklyn calzone has a lot more ingredients than usual calzones in this area, boasting mozzarella, ricotta, pepperoni, meatballs (sliced), mushrooms, and garlic. There were healthy amounts of ricotta in the calzone, which is always a favorite of mine. The pepperoni was super-fresh and you could taste the oil mixing with the cheeses. The meatballs’ consistency were alright, but when eaten singularly didn’t have a whole lot of flavor. The mushrooms were a nice touch, and added an element of moisture to the dish. What really throws this calzone over the average edge is the garlic. Not all restaurants put garlic in their calzone, believe it or not. The dough was quite delicious and baked perfectly, it wasn’t “dough-y” as some restaurants concoct, but thin and crispy. It was very similar to Ledo’s type of dough, but not overly brushed in butter. One thing I did notice was that having the calzone cut into thirds caused it to lose heat quite quickly, and the meal had cooled off before I could finish it resulting in congealed lumps of cheese. All-in-all, this was a very good calzone. I score this calzone a B- because of its dastardly price of over $13 given its size. Although, to be fair, there was clearly more effort put into this one than most of the calzones that I’ve eaten so far. However, as a consumer, there comes a point where the value of paying for quality is lower than the intrinsic value of the product. Nobody would pay $400 for a perfectly manufactured pencil, when a normal one would do just fine.

Crust Pizzeriza Napoletana – Vienna, VA

I came here on another recommendation from my Italian co-worker. She recommended I try the Pizza Fritta, which turns out to be a Fried Calzone, so that’s exactly what I did. I went a few hours after lunchtime, so the place was pretty dead. The atmosphere of the venue was open and modern with a little Italian flair adorning the walls here and there. I could see a wood-fire oven in the corner behind the cash register. Once I ordered, I sat down and waited for about ten minutes for the calzone to arrive and, when it did, I have to say that I had never seen a calzone like this one. It was clearly fried, as the dough resembled a funnel cake of some kind. It wasn’t topped with anything, but sprinkled green with chopped basil or parsley. Yes, this calzone was “doughy” but being fried dough was quite flavorful by itself. The calzone contained ricotta cheese, a thin authentic-style Italian sauce, and thick sliced and diced cuts of what appeared to be ham but the website calls it “Salami di Napoli”. The ham/salami was cured and gave a salty flavor to the dish. The interesting thing about the frying process was that it created a “stew” out of the inside of the calzone so that all of the individual ingredients were mixed together into a soupy pinkish mess inside the pocket. There were also what appeared to be whole bay leaves cooked inside with the other ingredients, and their flavor permeated everything about the calzone. Despite the unappealing look of the inside, this calzone was quite good. I would say that this calzone was medium-big, it wasn’t as big as the biggest I’ve had so far, but it certainly was larger than average. It was not served with any marinara sauce. I give this calzone a B- because the bay leaves were very powerful, it was just slightly too much dough, and the cost of this meal was $15. I would have maybe charged $10 or $11 for it and still thought that was generous.

Ledo's Pizza - Springfield, VA (Round 2)

So I've been to Ledo's maybe 5 or 6 times now. Each time was pretty consistent, and that's what one would expect from a local chain restaurant.

BUT NOT THIS TIME. This time, it was different.

It had been about 8 or 9 months since I had been to Ledo's, maybe even longer. I'm not sure what they've done, but their Chicken Calzone has changed and for the BETTER!.

First of all, it's packed with a lot more stuffing. The bread comes in that classic crispy crust, and they've turned it up to 11. There is grilled chicken slices, sauteed mushrooms, garlic, and onions. The Ledo's sauce is tangy and mildly spicy and works wonderfully. The calzone claims to have about 1600 calories, and it only costs $7.99!

Furthermore, I was helped by no less than 4 people, each one of them asking me if I needed something or if someone else had already gotten my order. The food was much faster as well, only took about 15 minutes to receive the meal.

Ledo's classic square calzone may not be anything close to an authentic italian calzone, but it sure is good. I'm re-rating this calzone at an A- for being the same thing it was before, only better!

Sodexo Cafeteria inside the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office – Alexandria, VA

I did not plan to eat here. It was by accident that, while I was at a naturalization ceremony, I forgot my sandwich in the car. When I arrived at the cafeteria, there was one sausage and cheese calzone left. I’ll be frank here, the calzone was not as bad as some of the other ones on this list. It was a pretty decent size; I would say a solid “medium”. The price of it ended up being $5.89, which, if you’ve read my other reviews now makes it the cheapest calzone I have eaten. I was however charged a “meal tax” of 0.31 cents, whatever that is. The calzone contained marinara sauce, which was pretty regular; ricotta cheese, which was nice; mozzarella cheese, also normal; and, finally, chunks of Italian sausage. The sausage here reminded me of eating at Mangino’s, in that it was just actual “hot dog style” sausage which was cut into pieces. Unlike Mangino’s though, it was much easier to eat. The sausage was pretty good, and wasn’t spicy at all. I give this calzone a D+ because I would much rather eat some other calzone, but it wasn’t bad for the price and as a replacement for a forgotten lunch.

The Esposito’s – Fairfax, VA

I am not fully sure how to describe this calzone. It was some kind of crazy hybrid between a pizza and a calzone. Not much was actually in the “pocket”. The mozzarella was on top, the bread was about as thick as pizza dough, inside was ricotta cheese and Italian sausage. The overall size of the calzone was bigger than average, and this was the small one they offered. The one thing that The Esposito’s succeeded in, that a couple of other calzone places I’ve listed failed at, was to accurately put an amount of sausage into the calzone to give it flavor but not overpower it with a “salt” sensation. I have to say, this calzone was REALLY good. One of the better ones that I’ve had so far in Northern Virginia. I would say that the $11.99 price tag was pretty fair considering the decent amount of ricotta, the superb ratio of sausage, the flawless execution of bakery skill and the size of the dish. I also happened to order the calamari appetizer. I have to say that this was one of the most well prepared calamari dishes I’ve ever had as well. The marinara it was served with was spot-on, the lemons, and the amount of breading couple with the delicate frying technique all played together to create a most satisfying dish. The atmosphere of the restaurant was also probably the best I’ve found. It would seem that all or most of the staff in the restaurant are actual Italians. When I sat down, I was given water immediately, the waitress listed the specials, and then plates were cleared. Classic. I would call this restaurant high-end Italian comfort food. There didn’t appear to be any “fusion” or “flair” to the meals, they were just classic Italian dishes just like you know and love, but likely with a much higher quality than you or I could prepare them. The decorum of the venue gives off an old-world charm. You won’t find any plastic knives or paper napkins here (well maybe underneath the calamari to catch the grease). With my entire meal (appetizer Calzone, soft drink) the bill ended up being $24.10. I dropped $30 and left completely satisfied. I probably wouldn’t visit this restaurant every weekend. In fact, it’s so nice that I’m more likely to return, if and when I am ever able to score a date with a female, as a classic “nice dinner” move. This calzone gets a B+ because it was perfectly baked, strangely designed, and the ricotta cheese was ever-so-slightly cool.

Pomodoro – Fairfax, VA

I first tried to go here before I went to Tony’s NY Pizza, but it happened to be closed for renovations on the day I chose. So, this time, I called ahead of time and was informed that they were open. I made the 10 mile trip from my house and found the restaurant to be a kind of “cafeteria” style place, one where you order your food in a line and they call your number to come pick it up. The cashier, who I assumed to be the owner/manager, was very nice and fronted me 7 cents instead of breaking a dollar into 92 cents for my change. I wanted to tip him or the establishment, but there was no tip jar. There were also no servers, so I wasn’t sure about leaving a tip on the table. I ordered the Ham Calzone this time around. It didn’t take too long to arrive, perhaps 5-10 minutes. When I got it, I realized that it was on the smaller sizes of the calzones that I have eaten so far; pretty comparable to the size I was served at Tony’s. I would call this one a “small” calzone in comparison to the ones I’ve already eaten. As soon as I started eating it, I realized that the dough used was super-tough. It was a very thick style of bread, made with a decent amount of butter/oil and sugar. I could smell the sweetness of it. It reminded me a lot of that thick European bread that you can get for 50 cents a loaf hot and fresh on the street in Ukraine. That sounds all well and good, but it was very tough, and puffy. Since the Calzone was kind of small, the puffy bread took up quite the percentage of the meal. In fact, I would say the bread was about 50-60% of the entire entrée. Did I mention that it was tough to cut through and chew? It was. Pomodoro did not skimp on the ricotta cheese though. They put in the healthiest helping of it that they could. As you pulled the Calzone apart, you could tell that it was mixed with the mozzarella cheese pretty well. One huge detractor from this Calzone was the ham. I know in previous postings that I have complained about the ham being too salty and overpowering the dish, but this ham was very nearly uncured and had almost no flavor whatsoever. There was no salt to mix with the sweetness of the ricotta and that was just kind of sad. I don’t think it would have made any difference on the dish whatsoever if the ham was simply left out. The dish was served with a nice portion of a pretty good marinara sauce; one that wasn’t spicy but didn’t taste particularly fake or canned either. Maybe it was, but I liked it all the same. The price of this calzone was $7.25, so it wasn’t particularly expensive. An interesting thing I noticed was that the appetizer of calamari costs more, at $9.50, than this main dish. The issues with this Calzone come from some of the standard potholes that I think boutique pizza parlors probably fall into. In general, their specialty is their pizza, and calzones are an afterthought. They often use the same dough, and same ingredients that they would on their pizzas. In fact, I know their pizzas would be tasty based on what kind of dough they use, but I just don’t think it worked well here in this format. I give this Calzone an D- because it was on the small side, too bready, and there was no ham flavor at all. The only bonus comes from the fact that I think the employees are great and the atmosphere of the restaurant is better than most.

Tony’s NY Pizza – Chantilly, VA

So this place wasn’t my first choice. I tried to go to Pomodoro in Fairfax, VA first but, when I arrived, they were closed for renovations or something. I quickly searched Google Maps and found this place less than two miles away. The first thing that you’ll notice upon stepping into the restaurant is that it smells like an old-folks home; like cleaner and urine. It was very strange. There were a decent amount of patrons at 2:00pm in the afternoon, and the pizza was behind glass. Most of what was on offer looked pretty appetizing. I ordered the “meat calzone” which supposedly comes with four types of cheese, pepperoni, and sausage. It took the restaurant about 15 minutes to cook it. It was, what I would describe as, a “small” calzone. Probably the smallest I’ve had so far. As an interesting thing to note though, I think this is probably the size a calzone “should” be, or traditionally is. I think that I’ve become biased to calzone sizes by eating so many of them over the history of this venture. The calzone was half-moon pocketbook shaped (standard) and it was served with a little cup of marinara sauce. When I cut open the calzone, I noticed that this was another situation where the restaurant used the same toppings they would have put on a pizza. We had pepperoni slices and Italian sausage sliced short-ways. There was plenty of grease from the meat that was contained in the pocket. I also only counted two kinds of cheese, mozzarella and ricotta. Holy crap though! A restaurant that remembered to put ricotta cheese in though! This is becoming a rarity! I thought the calzone was alright… pretty decent as a matter of fact… yet, still, I would describe it like carnival food, as I have so many times before. It didn’t have that chef-quality type of feel/taste to it. Instead, it felt like a vendor at a boardwalk had prepared it en-masse. Not that this makes it bad, but it automatically disqualifies it from a high-score since no personal touches were added to it. The worst part about the meal was the marinara sauce. I am glad that it was served with some, but this stuff just tasted like Spaghetti-O’s sauce. It was very nearly tomato paste. It was very bland and had an odd, sweet, flavor. It was also very flat and processed. There wasn’t too much to complain about since this calzone was only $5.95! The cheapest one yet! Despite the ridiculously awesome price (but also small size), I have to give this Calzone a D+ since it was just run-of-the-mill and was served with a pretty bad marinara sauce. Also, the restaurant needs to get rid of that smell. Woo Wee!

The First Bunch

Ovvio Osteria – Fairfax, VA

The calzones here are some of the best I’ve ever had. They are quite large and, unsurprisingly, due to their artisanal nature, sport a hefty price at $14.99 for the cheapest. My favorite is the spicy italian sausage calzone. The dough is handmade and is fired in a brick oven. This gives the dough a delicious crisp and scorched flavor. The calzone contains tubs of ricotta and unique, fresh mozzarella and Italian sausage chunks. The ingredients create a watery inside and create quite a mess if you aren’t methodical about your calzone eating. It is served with a side of delicious marinara. I’ve also eaten their margarita calzone, but I didn’t like it as much as the spicy Italian sausage. However, I do recognize how well it was crafted, despite my personal tastes. Still very good. It gets an A- and is only detracted by the expensive price. (EDIT: I believe this restaurant has since gone out of business – due to YELP reports.)

Ledo’s Pizza – Springfield, VA

A franchise restaurant with pretty standard calzones. I’ve been to the one nearest my house in Springfield, VA at least three times and each time I have left satisfied. So far, this restaurant offers the cheapest calzones around; at &7.99 apiece. The calzones are square, and are served on a plate big enough to get messy with. They are also served with a side of marinara which, as I’m starting to learn, isn’t always standard in the calzone game. The chicken calzone is very satisfying, and contains chicken, red onions, mushrooms, and mozzarella. The dough is a little tough, but flaky. It almost has a fried-type of quality to it. This one is a solid C+

Paisano’s Pizza – Burke, VA

Terrible. Dough was bready and without flavor, the filling was decent but only took 60% of the volume of the dish, leaving a lot of bread to eat. The dish was served without a side of marinara, so the limited amount that was contained inside the pocket was all you have to eat. This is more of an institutional pizza place without any real culinary merit at all. A small pizza franchise that a few locals patron because they’ve convinced themselves that paying extra for sub-par quality is better than ordering at a “chain” like pizza hut or dominoes. The calzone was a standard $8.99, but was literally the worst calzone I’ve ever eaten because no thought or effort went into it at all. Score: F-

Mangino’s Pizza – Burke, VA

Not very good. It was almost as if you asked a Chinese restaurant to make a calzone with the ingredients they had on hand. I ordered the Lucky Luciano calzone with Italian sausage. The chef took an entire length of Italian sausage and cut it in half lengthwise. Then they roll the sausage in pizza dough together with a lot of banana peppers. This causes the calzone to be very long and thin. Almost a dog-bone shape. There isn’t much in the way of cheese, and the sausage isn’t sliced any further. This makes the calzone hard to eat because you can remove the entire sausage with one pull of the fork. The banana peppers create a strange umami flavor with the dough and the cheese. The “calzone” was quite small, and for $10.99, it was not worth the price. It was served with a side of marinara, which was alright. I’ll give this one a D- for at least some creative effort.

King’s NY Pizza – Fairfax, VA

One of the best in the area. I’ve eaten at this restaurant three times and tried a different calzone each time. They put a decent amount of ricotta and mozzarella cheese in their calzones and they are medium-large and, for $9.00, are the best value in the Northern Virginia area. There are no artisan surprises here, no culinary creativity run-amok, just good calzones with standard (and fresh) ingredients that taste great. So far my favorite has been the Ham Calzone. The ham they use is heavily cured and the saltiness plays well with the mozzarella cheese (but not too salty). The restaurant itself has a nice atmosphere, never seems crowded. Anoush, the waitress, is wonderful, but the other staff members don’t appear to care too much. I give this calzone a B+

Valentino’s NY Style Pizzeria & Restaurant – Alexandria, VA

Fantastic, Authentic and a unique location in a world saturated by franchises and high-end dining. There isn’t any flair when visiting this place, but you get the feeling that this is real Italian and that there’s actually a guy named “Valentino” who owns the business (maybe not, that’s just speculation). What I’m trying to get at is that this place definitely gives the “Italian pizzeria” vibe. Their calzones are quite standard in shape; the classic “moon-shaped pocketbook” thing that you’ll see in TV or movies. I ordered the Deluxe Calzone, because I thought it would showcase their skills. They definitely use the freshest ingredients I’ve ever seen in a calzone. In fact, I think they cooked the base calzone closed, then cut it open and fired it once more with the added ingredients. The calzone was served open-faced and the most delicious marinara sauce I’ve ever had came along with it. It was a medium sized dish, and I had no problem finishing it off. The atmosphere of the restaurant was great, the calzone was fresh, unique, and contained everything a calzone should; mozzarella, ricotta, good dough, marinara on the side. The slices of Italian sausage, pepperoni, and mushrooms really brought this one home. The price? Only $9.75. Given the taste and the value, I’m giving this one an A+. Just spectacular.

PIOLA – Arlington, VA

I tried this restaurant on a co-worker’s recommendation. She is a real Italian, born and raised and emigrated from Italy. She said this restaurant had the best pizza she’s had in this area. So, naturally, I had to try their calzone. According to their website, PIOLA is an Italian based (franchised) pizza chain. The first thing to note about this place is that it’s not easy to get to. It’s in the middle of downtown Arlington, and I had to pay $10 to park. As I got closer to the restaurant I noticed there was metered street parking. Novice mistake. When I entered the restaurant the hostess asked “how can I help you?” which I thought was an odd question. After an awkward explanation of why I came to a restaurant for some food, I was seated. It was after the lunch hour (approximately 1:30PM) but it took the waiter 15 minutes to approach me. He was very pleasant, and I ordered their calzone. They had only one calzone on the menu; a ham and mushroom. I also ordered a Guarana, because I love that Brazilian soda and haven’t had it for a while. Upon eating the dish, I noticed that the dough was thin and slightly crispy, which was nice. It was a medium-sized calzone filled up with sliced ham and mushrooms, mozzarella and marinara. The problem I had with this calzone was that the marinara was very watery and leaked out everywhere all over the plate. It was tasty, but needed to be reduced or thickened considerably. The calzone was also notably missing ricotta cheese. Now, I don’t think this is a rule of law or anything, but many of the tastiest calzones appear to contain ricotta cheese. The ham was decent, the mushrooms were sautéed, it appears to have been fired in a brick oven. It was not served with marinara. The price for this calzone was a whopping $15.00. This calzone wasn’t worth anywhere near that price. While eating it, I realized that their pizza must be pretty tasty, since their ingredients were good. However, it just didn’t translate well into the calzone format. It then took the waiter almost 15 more minutes to come around after I ate and offer the check. I give this calzone a C- for being a menu after-thought.

Pizza Boli’s – Fairfax, VA

Now this calzone was odd, but not in a bad way. Note: it is not a dine-in restaurant. In fact, this isn’t even called a calzone on their menu, but a Stromboli. It, however, has all of the makings of a calzone. There was a pocket of bread, sausage, mozzarella, and sauce. I had to wait around for them to make it (of course). The guy at the counter was pleasant and the cost wasn’t terrible; only $9.99. For what this “Stromboli” is, I think it’s a couple of dollars too high. I’ve had better calzones that were cheaper. I ordered the Regular Stromboli, it had Pizza Cheese, Pizza Sauce, and Ground Beef. I’m not sure what type of ingredients they use, but it tasted like… carnival food. It’s hard to describe. It tasted like a manufactured meal instead of one that was handmade. The cheese was indeed regular pizza cheese. The dough was just fine and bready, just like pizza dough, and the ground beef was exactly like the ground beef you would get on a pizza if you ordered a meat lover’s. So, I suppose what I’m saying was that this just tasted, literally, like a folded over pizza with ground beef topping. Nothing more, nothing less. I give this “Stromboli” a D+ since it wasn’t terrible, the price was too high, but, ultimately, there was nothing that differentiated it from a pizza with the same topping.

Mamma Lucia – Inside Fair City Mall – Fairfax, VA

I had been to this plaza-style mall once before to watch Hacksaw Ridge with a church group. I didn’t realize that the restaurant that dominates the hall was actually Mamma Lucia’s, so when I saw this restaurant online, I thought to myself “Why haven’t I heard of this place?” The way it’s described online makes it sound like a small bistro opened by an Italian woman that serves authentic Italian fare. What this place is, in fact, is a food-court style restaurant a-la-Sbarro. Don’t be mistaken, just because it feels like a mom-and-pop Sbarro stuffed into a small and ancient mall where one might find a dollar theatre, it was still quite good. The calzone I ordered here was made fresh. It had sausage, ham, and pepperoni in it, along with a healthy amount of mozzarella and a generous helping of ricotta. The calzone was cooked well, the dough was good, and it pocketed a good amount of its insides without being too “bready”. It was one of the smallest calzones I’ve eaten so far being, what I could call, medium-small. As a matter of fact, I think it was probably completely regular. The only calzone I ate that was smaller was at Mangino’s and that one was terrible and pricy. This calzone only set me back $7.49 with everything I listed. The sauce that it was served with was a standard marinara sauce. However, it did have a light kick to it that I found appetizing. I believe the sauce was store-bought and not handmade. The taste of the calzone felt a little like something you might get at a fair or a carnival. It felt “commercial” and not specialty-made. Of course, considering the venue, I wouldn’t have expected it to have come from a le cordon bleu chef or anything. In actuality, I was quite surprised how much I enjoyed it comparatively to other calzone’s on this list for the price. The store-front here would have justified a calzone in the D or F range, but I happily give this one a C+ for the taste and price. Yes, this calzone beat out a high-end Italian eatery due to the price, pleasantness of the staff, and its standard taste.

Villa Bella – Burke, VA

From what I can tell, this is one of the two restaurants from the same owner. The other one is Giardino’s in Springfield, VA. The menus appear to be identical, so I think I’ll probably avoid traveling to the other one. I purchased the Calzone Paradiso. According to the menu, this calzone contains Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Onions, Sausage, Prosciutto and Pecorino cheese. So the first thing I noticed when I received the calzone was that melted cheese was on top of the bready pocket. This added a nice visual touch and some crunchy cheese flavor towards the middle of the meal. The calzone was exactly what I would describe as medium sized, normal by all accounts. The dough was stone-baked to perfection. From the very first bite, one could tell that the bread was the same… and I mean the same… bread as the pizza dough. Literally. The dough was covered in corn meal; the same way Domino’s Pizza is. In fact, I thought it was domino’s until I actually got into the guts of the dish. Not to say this was a bad thing, but the texture brought back memories of church lock-ins and all night drinking parties when I was in college. One you reached the innards of the calzone, the diner will notice the sausage without haste. It is some kind of ground sausage that has a strong bacon flavor to it. The tomato sauce was also immediately present, and I would describe it as wet like the kind I experienced at Piola’s (which an actual Italian confirmed is more authentic) and not chunky or thick like it was store bought or filled with thickening agents. I thought it tasted fine. A big criticism of this calzone is that there was way too much prosciutto in it. Everything tasted salty. In fact, this isn’t the first calzone I’ve eaten that was overshadowed by the salt that comes from the cured meat. It was like solid soy sauce; very salty. I’m not sure I’ve ever had pecorino cheese before this occasion, and I found it to be a lot like mozzarella, but lighter and easier to eat. The onions were chopped and still contained their aromatic flavor, which added nicely to the meal. The biggest downside to this calzone is the price - $14.95. I have eaten other $15 dollar calzones before and this one just didn’t feel like it was worth the price. I would have happily paid maybe $10 for it since it was better than some others on this list, but not anywhere close to being the best. The wait-staff was nice, but again… the hostess asking me “how can I help you?” This is a really confusing question for someone who has just walked into a restaurant, since the only obvious answer is… “Yes, I would like some food please.” When I asked how much the diet coke was, the waiter told me “I don’t actually know the price”, prompting me to see if it was possible for him to find out. Otherwise, a very pleasant experience. The marinara sauce it was served with was thick and spicy, I enjoyed it. The meal was also served with a side of artisan bread and oil, which I thought was a nice touch. An interesting point about this restaurant is that there was no ricotta cheese in the calzone, but they had calzones on the menu that do have ricotta in them. In fact, many of the calzones contain completely different cheese options; as if each calzone was designed separately. I give this calzone a C+. The score being detracted on by the salty flavor, the price, and the odd choice of dough.