There’s wisdom in dining at Tino’s Pizzeria and Bar, located in Wyomissing. When it comes to good eats, one’s mind is ever hopeful: “You want what you expect,” says Meagan DiMariano. And that’s what Tino’s is all about. “My husband’s family owned Santino’s for around 20 years,” she says, and what had been a longtime destination for pizza and other Italian specialties has been totally rehabbed into a casual-chic, upbeat, very contemporary, welcoming environment with lots of the same Italian-American favorites and plenty of specials.
“We slammed down all the walls in here,” says Meagan, looking around the restaurant with well-deserved satisfaction. This mom of two young boys was working a hammer right there with the whole crew as they created a new dining room complete with a beautiful bar, booths and tables. The owners also set up a separate banquet room for private parties — first-year birthdays, bridal showers, wedding rehearsal dinners, and the like — which accommodates 60 people. “It was funny,” Meagan smiles, reminiscing. “During the renovation, people would sometimes come right up, look in the windows, and then ask us when we would be opening.”
Tino’s has retained all the good food it had going for it: It’s got the same pizza, oozing with that same delicious red sauce, golden-brown mozzarella cheese, fresh oil, and a lovely, substantial crust that allows all its varied toppings to climb aboard yet is mild enough to let pepperoni and olives and other ingredients do the talking. Eleven types of pasta still grace the menu. Likewise, the classics remain intact: “Our Chicken Parm is basic. It’s the Chicken Parm you expect to get; we don’t play around with it,” Meagan affirms. And she means it. When the dish gets delivered to your table, you not only want to dig right in, but you are immediately struck (and comforted) by the enormous portion — you’ll be envisioning the next day’s lunch!
Call of the Specials
“While we keep our classics, we do play around with the specials,” Meagan says. Philly Pork Sandwich with Broccoli Rabe is one dynamic example; Seafood Linguini made with shrimp, clams, mussels and calamari is another. Recently, on a Wednesday evening, when Tino’s has Chicken Steak on the features list, the parking lot was packed. This famed entrée starts with chicken breast pounded out very thinly, then dredged in tempura-style batter and fried. Atop are plumped-up, heated cherry tomatoes bursting open in a sweet golden sauce with a stewed-tomato flavor. “People absolutely love it. They come in just for that!” And yes, when it’s gone, it’s gone. (Come back next week.)
No matter what, do eat sparingly before walking in. Ample portions are a rule of the house. “We’ve always been known for that,” Meagan nods.
Cheese Curd Starters and Luscious Salads
Pickle fries, mussels, meatball sliders, and crunchy cheese curds dipped in marinara are but a few of many tasty appetizers. The cheese stuffed inside Tino’s Fried Ravioli oozes out with freshness and mingles with the herbed cheese mixture dusted on top of the well-crafted pasta pockets.
Another starter option: Instead of ordering pizza for dinner, perhaps begin dinner with a country-style White Pizza, shared by the whole table. Or just get traditional red-sauce pizza, with no less than 19 toppings to choose from.
Caesar salad, Tuna salad and Chip Steak salad (“extremely popular”) all can be main meals, but wholesome house salads do come with most entrees. Best described as complicated in the most positive way, they’re comprised of a rainbow of greens, reds (tomatoes, red peppers), purple (onions) and orange (carrot slivers) topped by chunky curls of mild mozzarella, plus croutons. Try this with zesty Red Wine Vinaigrette house dressing.
Veal Steak and Chicken Bruschetta
Tino’s Veal Steak is huge, even kingly, taking up a whole plate — so big that whatever pasta you ordered needs to be served in a separate bowl. Its crunchy fried edging is unusually delectable, and while hearty, the steak is considerably lighter than what you might think. For a rich effect, a wide lake of melted provolone stretches across the surface of well-pounded veal; thick, deep-red, rich tomato sauce ladled through the middle delivers perfect consistency.
A hands-down winner is the Chicken Bruschetta, which is exactly what it sounds like: all the aromatic scents and tastes of bruschetta antipasto slathered onto grilled chicken breast meat, garnished with sautéed spinach, roasted red pepper and mozzarella cheese. These elements land softly on a fulsome bed of linguini Alfredo, while shaved Parmesan makes a crowning touch. The creamy textures of poultry and veggies, tangy and non-tangy cheeses, herbs and pasta work seamlessly together for a fantastic, unmatchable main dish.
Portion sizes being what they are, who can consider dessert? Best idea: Share the Cannoli Dippers, triangular-shaped, “unfolded cannoli” shell pieces, dusted with powdered sugar and served with a central cup of yummy filling and chocolate chips.
Tino's Pizzeria & Bar
1 Wellington Blvd., Wyomissing
610.670.2052
Hours:
Sun-Th: 11am-10pm
Fri & Sat: 11am-11pm
