Cape Coral pizza news: The latest from Nice Guys, East of Chicago and an I Ragazzi return
As a pizza lover living in Cape Coral, I couldn’t be happier.
Unless Uncle Rico’s opens on this side of the river, but I digress.
Not only is the Cape home to well-established joints like Nice Guys and Leone’s, but new pizza-rrific places are making names for themselves as well.
Grado’s Pizza on Pine Island Road has had a steady crowd for its New York pies and slices since opening in August, and Gino’s Pizza on Santa Barbara Boulevard is gaining popularity with a Midwest-style pie just like the original Gino’s in Akron, Ohio.
Luciano’s Too opened late last month off Del Prado Boulevard North, in the space previously occupied by Morrone’s Pizzeria, after the original Luciano’s had customers lining up on Friday nights.
In southeast Cape, Trattoria Ciao is once again churning out wood-fired pies to the delight of many.
Since it’s difficult/nearly impossible for me to sample every pizza in town (although I’m willing to try), I’m bound to overlook some fan favorites.
BackStreets Sports Bar
Take BackStreets for example. For months, I’ve been hearing about the pizza at this 21-and-up downtown sports bar.
“People are crazy surprised when they come to this place and try our pizza,” said Shelly Walton, BackStreets’ owner for nearly 30 years. “We make our own dough, the sauce we have is ours. We shred our own cheese, make our own meatballs and sausage, even roast the peppers here. A guy I knew came in and taught us this recipe years ago.”
That guy knows his pizza as does Walton. When she bought the business, “we just had a fried food menu.”
But she eventually perfected her pizza until “we were so busy we couldn’t keep up.”
“I created a breakfast pizza 15 or 20 years ago,” she said. “We did a scrambled egg instead of red sauce, added ham, sausage, bacon. It’s still a pretty big seller.”
On our visit, we tried the meatball pizza. Add me to the list of surprised customers.
Those homemade meatballs — the recipe from Walton’s grandmother — were outstanding, and the pie’s crust was crispy, chewy, foldable goodness.
Mondays are a good time to check it out for yourself with half-priced pizza from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. If the outside seats are full, try inside. You’re welcome. (BackStreets Sports Bar, 915 SE 47th Terrace, Cape Coral; 239-610-3157; backstreetssportsbar.com)
In other Cape Coral pizza news ...
Finding I Ragazzi
If you've been missing I Ragazzi’s Pizza since it suddenly closed in May, I have good news for you. Tim Luke, who opened the Hancock Bridge Parkway pizza joint in 2007, is busy making his signature pies, calzones, sandwiches, salads, wings and more at The Lion’s Den Bar and Grill in Chandelle Square on Del Prado Boulevard.
“It’s the same dough, same everything as before,” said Luke, who doesn’t own the restaurant but manages and runs the kitchen. “I’d say (the pizza) is even better now. I’m doing the sauce by hand. I can focus more on the pies instead of just cranking them out.”
Luke is happy to be cooking for the community once again.
“It’s nice to be back,” he said. “I’m just doing my thing, trying to feed people my food.” (The Lion’s Den is open Monday to Saturday at 1127 Del Prado Blvd. S, Cape Coral; 239-471-0821; follow on Facebook)
East of Chicago Pizza
The Horstmans, the father and son owners of the Santa Barbara Boulevard pizza franchise, are on the cusp of expanding.
According to manager Kyle Hashbarger, a second location off Pine Island Road will open “the middle of next week maybe.” It’ll be in the new Pine Island Park plaza at the corner of NE 8th Street and NE 13th Avenue.
Then a third one will follow “a couple of weeks later” in downtown Cape at 4706 SE 9th St., between SE 47th Terrace and SE 47th Street in the former Pawty Express building.
East of Chicago, headquartered in Lima, Ohio, is known for its pan crust.
“It’s light and airy with a crunch,” Hashbarger said. “We’ve got 11 specialty pizzas and the best seller is the taco.”
That taco-tastic pizza comes with salsa, taco-style meat or grilled fajita chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, olives, sour cream and more.
Other crust options include thin, authentic Chicago style, crispy, and loaded crust. Subs, salads, wings and more are also available. (East of Chicago, open now at 1306 Santa Barbara Blvd., Cape Coral, 239-360-7365, eastofchicago.com)
DaVinci’s PizzaVino
This pizza place opened last month in the Publix-anchored Coral Shores plaza at the corner of Pine Island and Burnt Store roads. It took over the spot next to China Palace which previously housed a Joe Daddy’s location.
This small order-at-the-counter joint makes its dough fresh every day and offers Chicago thin crust and New York crust pies. Specialty pizzas include the Windy City (with sausage, onion, garlic and giardiniera), Bianca (white pie), Hawaiian and more.
A few salads, parmesan subs and wings are also offered in addition to calzones, strombolis and chicken pizza pies.
Pizza by the slice ($4 for one, $7 for two) is available until 4 p.m. (DaVinci’s Pizza Vino, 3015 Pine Island Road, Cape Coral, 239-558-4071, davincispizzavino.com)
And speaking of Nice Guys
One of my favorite pizza places in Southwest Florida has brought the Wishbone back through Thanksgiving and I couldn’t be more grateful. This seasonal gem features turkey confit, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, cranberry, cheese and a stuffing crust.
“The crust is all the stuff you find in stuffing,” said co-owner Greg Gebhard, who has brought this customer favorite back for the “fifth or sixth year.”
“Sage, celery, bread, all right there in the crust. Some customers will order a few of these and freeze them so they can have some after Thanksgiving.”
Plan ahead: Thanksgiving Day 2023 restaurants open in Cape, Fort Myers, Bonita
Now open: New Coney Island restaurant brings breakfast, lunch to south Fort Myers all day, all night
We can see why. One bite magically transports you to a Thanksgiving Day table. It’s the best of a traditional meal in six oversized slices.
I’m going to gobble one (or two) more up before Thanksgiving. You should too. (Nice Guys, 1404 Cape Coral Parkway, Cape Coral, 239-549-7542, niceguyspizza.com)
Robyn George is a food and dining writer for The Fort Myers News-Press. Send news to rhgeorge@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral pizza news: Nice Guys, BackStreets, East of Chicago, more
