Neighbor News
Howl at the Moon Like a Caioti
Restaurant review of Tujunga Village pizzeria / restaurant
Caioti is one of the highlights of Tujunga Village. It is a sweet little pizza, pasta, and salad cafe that also serves delicious pot roast, crispy pressed chicken, and salmon. Rocky and Sarah are our two favorite servers. They are both very hardworking and friendly, and Rocky is a fellow Midwesterner who shares my love of Vernor's ginger ale. Their prices are fair, their garlic knots are delish, and their caprese salad is generous and really well put together. Such good balsamic! I can't believe I actually like a gluten-free crust, but I actually order Caioti's for the taste. It's light, crispy, and has a good texture. I've been getting into their New World pizzas lately, and their Smoked Chicken is to die for. The Rockefeller is pretty good too, but you have to be in the mood for seafood. The Spicy Lamb Sausage is fantastic, and I'm not a huge sausage fan. That crispy pressed chicken is absolutely sublime, juicy, and flavorful. Love the garlic mashed potatoes, too!
Their weekend breakfasts are excellent, and the presentation is beautiful.
Here are some realities that I need to recognize as an honest restaurant reviewer:
- the food quality takes a precipitous dive after 9pm. If you go for a late dinner, don't expect the food to be as good. You may also get burned, stale, or cold garlic knots. I'd really like for the cooks to keep on top of the the garlic knots, since when they're good, they're SO good.
- the roasted red potatoes are often overcooked. This is an Achilles heel of Caioti. The chefs just take a very heavy hand with those potatoes. If you like your potatoes done very light, bear this in mind.
On the very positive note:
- if Caioti errs, they make it right. We got a Margarita pizza once, and unfortunately, upon arriving home, we found that it was burned and way under-cheesed. I spoke with Ryan on the phone, and he promised us a comp. We went back a few days later, got another pizza, and that one was excellent. I admire a place that makes right where something went wrong.
Obviously, their minor flaws are only minor, since we are die hard fans. I highly recommend!
