JEANNA DUERSCHERL The Roanoke Times

One of Leonardo's top sellers is a veggie pizza with green peppers, mushrooms, onions, black olives, tomatoes, garlic and cheese.

It's easy to pass Leonardo's on Botetourt Road heading toward Fincastle because it's a slim strip of a building set back on the left side of the highway just past the firehouse. But parking in front of the restaurant and to the side makes it easy to get in and out.

The plain building with its red awning reminded me of some of the pizza parlors my parents took me to during my youth, where families gathered for tomato pies that they called "a beetz," using the Southern Italian dialect. Adding to the nostalgia at Leonardo's is the 1940s music floating through the rooms over the speakers. I had high hopes for some good pie.

The prep and service kitchen, which was immaculately clean, was directly ahead as I opened the front door. One staff member greeted us warmly and gave us menus, and another escorted us into the dining room. This cordiality typifies the manners and conduct of the personnel.

There are plenty of booths lining the windows on the right side as well as along the opposite wall, leaving an open area down the center of the room. The place is simply, yet efficiently, furnished, comfortable and clean.

Meet the owner

Owner Eric Whitson fired up the brick oven in July, 14 months after he purchased the place. He renovated the building inside and out, replacing windows and floor tile, putting in new bathrooms, revamping the kitchen with a brick oven and stainless steel counters, and installing booths in the dining room.

For Whitson, the restaurant, which is named after his grandfather, fulfills one of his personal ambitions: owning a pizzeria that is a family restaurant. He decided to open his own pizza parlor after spending 10 years learning how to make pies at New York Pizza in Vinton.

He emphasizes that Leonardo's has its own identity when it comes to pizza and says the philosophy of his restaurant is to use the freshest ingredients in all of his preparations. Whitson makes his own dough and sauces every day.

The menu

The same menu is served at lunch and dinner and features typical pizzeria offerings at reasonable prices.

This includes 13 subs ($6.75 to $6.95), four burgers ($4.95 to $5.95), six salads ($2.95 to $5.95), seven rolls and turnovers ($6.95 to $7.95), two sizes of round and thin Neapolitan-style pizzas (10-inch, $6.95; 18-inch, $12.95) and six specialty pizzas ($4.95 to $19.95).

Beverages include beer, wine, tea and soft drinks. Desserts, including cannoli and Philadelphia-style cheesecake ($2.95), are always available.

What I tried

I made two visits to Leonardo's, and during the first visit, we ordered three different pizzas. These unusually pale, white-rimmed pizzas surprised us when they arrived at our table because of their lack of bubble blisters or golden brown color. Even though the thin crusts were cooked throughout, the cheese had hardly melted. A spinach pizza covered with ricotta, sliced tomatoes, olive oil and mozzarella had mounds of drab-colored spinach scattered about the top. This spinach pizza was a good idea, but poorly executed. However, I maintained my optimism for some delicious pie.

On our second visit, attractive pizzas sporting golden brown rims and ingredients in perfect proportion were delivered. My family devoured them. We ordered the round, thin Neapolitan-style, which had a crisp but tender crust topped with smears of tomato sauce and melted cheese. The pizza marinara, a classic prepared without cheese, featured tasty tomato sauce, garlic and olive oil, making it a delicious, succulent pizza. In pizza-loving areas of the Northeast, such as Philadelphia and Newark, N.J., this simple pizza without cheese is called "tomato pie."

From the pizzas, I graduated to a refreshing salad of crisp iceberg and romaine lettuces in bite-size pieces with a generous amount of Italian dressing on the side. In the sub department, my family and I tried the cheese steak special ($6.95), a satisfying sandwich that was not greasy and had good portions of meat and cheese stuffed into an excellent roll.

We liked the meatball Parm, too. This well-packed sandwich ($6.75) had an abundance of cocktail-size meatballs in a tasty red sauce smothered with melted mozzarella.

A salad sandwich, the Greenfield ($6.75), boasted green peppers, onions, mushrooms, black olives, cheese, lettuce, tomato and Italian dressing in a fresh, tasty roll that absorbed some of the dressing and became even more delicious.

We also tried a calzone ($7.95), a superb combination with not too much bread in comparison to the generous quantities of melted mozzarella and ham. The sauce, though, had a good tomato flavor but lacked seasonings, such as oregano or basil.

When I go back ...

I will order an antipasto salad ($5.95) first, followed by a Neapolitan cheese pizza. I'll bring my family again so we can order several items and enjoy a pizza-good time.

The bottom line

Leonardo's has won me over with its generous portions of quality pizzeria food at just the right prices. In addition to the tasty pizza and subs, it's a comfortable place and the pleasant, courteous service leads the way for everyone to have a good time.