For the finest Italian dining in downtown Smyrna, stop in La Tavola Ristorante Italiano on Front Street in the historic Depot District. The eatery has an impressive selection of pasta dishes, a fairly extensive wine list, pizza, calzones, stromboli, sandwiches, cannoli and more.
The La Tavola pizzas sit on a fresh and fluffy crust.
“The crust of their pizza alone is worth its weight in gold,” according to a La Tavola fan, Tamara Kern.
And the spinach manicotti, calzones and chicken parm get good reviews, as do the delicious, fragrant garlic breadsticks served with all meals.
The pasta lineup includes meat or cheese ravioli, spaghetti bolognese, chicken piccata, eggplant or chicken parmigiana, lasagna, tortellini, marsala and shrimp alfredo.
J.C. Brooks said he was impressed with the “four big, delicious meatballs and hot spaghetti” after ordering spaghetti and meatballs at a Friday evening dinner.
The La Tavola Specialty pasta combines grilled shrimp, chicken and beef with penne pasta in a Cajun alfredo sauce with diced peppers, while the restaurant’s chicken florentino contains fettuccine, sauteed chicken, sun-dried tomato, homemade alfredo sauce, spinach, artichoke and parmesan.
“Definitely get the chicken parmigiana,” Roxana Bohórquez said. “The food is always awesome!”
Some say they find the pasta undercooked; others call it perfectly al dente, with just the right amount of snap.
The alfredo sauce is good and creamy and the Caesar dressing has a very tasty tang.
Special pizza creations include the white pizza with olive oil, beef, bell peppers, onions, fresh tomatoes, garlic, oregano and parmesan cheese; a chicken garlic pizza with olive oil, grilled chicken, roasted garlic, broccoli and mushrooms; the House Favorite pie, containing pepperoni, sausage and mushrooms; and a bacon cheeseburger pizza.
Chasity Boshers calls La Tavola her family’s “favorite pizza place.”
The restaurant also has double-crust pizza available.
Diners may create their own calzone or stromboli or select from a few menu options like the Greek—with cheese, spinach, feta, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes and banana peppers—or the Classic, containing pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers and cheese.
La Tavola tops its tables with paper, so those awaiting a meal can make a little art as soft Italian music plays in the small eatery.
It has a patio area with a few tables for outdoor dining during nice weather, and La Tavola is open for lunch and dinner every day of the week except for Sunday, when it closes at 4 p.m. Many independent restaurants close for a day or two during the week and may have more limited hours, but (other than Sunday nights) La Tavola is ready for lunch or dinner anytime.
The establishment has been through three ownership changes over the past decade, but it remains a Smyrna Depot District institution.
“The highlight was the calamari,” Mandy Johnson said. “It was crisp and the breading was delicious. The sauce paired well with it.”
La Tavola offers reduced prices on many items during lunch hours and offers a Wednesday evening date night special that includes two drinks, two pastas and one dessert for $42.
Many locals love the place, but it has gotten some mixed reviews lately, ranging from Kristy Fraley’s take that “I don’t think we’ve ever had a bad dish here” and Kay Barnhill’s post—which gushed “Delicious authentic Italian food . . . very high quality for the price . . . will not go to another Italian restaurant again”— to other less favorable comments on the taste and texture of the food, the cleanliness and smell of the place, the speed of the service (reportedly, at times only one server takes care of the whole dining room) and the furnishings.
“The booths were tattered and riddled with holes, the springs in our booth were broken and I sunk down like 4 inches when I sat,” one customer said. “The food was mediocre at best.”
“I wasn’t crazy about the Marsala sauce,” Raina Romano said, but did add that the portions were generous and the “bread was really great and everything was fresh.”
Tammy Clark Taylor reports, meanwhile, that the “eggplant parmesan was amazing!”
And those garlic breadsticks . . .
La Tavola Ristorante Italiano
114 Front St., Smyrna
Mon.–Thurs.: 11 a.m.–9 p.m.; Fri.–Sat.: 11 a.m.–10 p.m.; Sun.: 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
615-984-4771
Chicken parmigiana: $14 (dinner), $9 (lunch); medium calzone: $10.99; large Caesar salad: $7; La Tavola Specialty pasta: $16; 14-inch two-topping pizza (lunch): $13.90; Spinach manicotti: $14; tiramisu or cannoli: $5.99
latavolatn.com
