My parents have dined at Pagelli’s Italiano in the Wiregrass Mall for quite some time and mentioned to me I had to try the Tiramisu there. Being a huge Tiramisu fan, I did not miss the next chance I had to dine at Pagelli’s. The restaurant is spacious, with plenty of outdoor seating that is shaded and still cool despite the heat of a Florida summer. The setup is similar to many Italian chains and you may feel a sense of deja vu when you enter the restaurant (The Olive Garden came to mind).
I came for an early dinner and found that there was a special menu for early birds (4-6PM) with discounts on appetizers, entrees, and desserts. In addition, there was a bar menu that ran later and I decided to order the Calamari ($5-6) off of this menu. For my main course I ordered their Fettuccini Alfredo ($12) and for dessert I ordered the Tiramisu ($6). The waiter was quick to put our orders in and bring us drinks and bread.
The bread your average bread pieces. Not particularly soft or crunchy, but it worked well with the olive oil sauce provided. It wasn’t bad to snack on until the Calamari arrived a few minutes later.
The Calamari was crunchy and flavorful. The batter wasn’t too heavy. The two sauces provided went fine with it, but I enjoyed it more with just squeezed lemon on top. The Calamari normally costs $9 for dinner so this was quite a saving.
The Fettuccini Alfredo was one of the best parts of the meal. The pasta was well-cooked and the pieces long with plenty of Alfredo sauce to enjoy it with. It wasn’t quite as cheesy as the Fettuccine at Bella’s, but still tasted fresh. The pasta was much lighter than I was initially expecting, but still managed to nearly fill me up. I saved some of it for lunch the next day and it reheated well.
Finally, it was time for dessert and out came the Tiramisu. It has to be one of the most chocolate-coated desserts I have had in some time. While Bella’s pours it on top of the Tiramisu at your table, this dessert comes pre-coated. The inside of the Tiramisu is airy and sweet as a Tiramisu should be. The coffee flavoring is powerful and perhaps the only part that I didn’t enjoy in this dessert was the strong rum taste. If you’re not really much of a rum drinker, you may not like this rum-like aftertaste. Nevertheless, the dessert is still a quality tasting and well worth the $6 price. For now my favorite Tiramisu continues to belong to Hella’s Bakery in Tarpon Springs.
Overall, dining at Pagelli’s Italiano was a pleasant experience. The food was excellent and the service on point. One interesting thing I noticed was the sounds of an opera Italian singer over a speaker system. I originally thought this was a recording (which occurs in many restaurants) and was shocked to find out that the voice I heard was actually being projected from inside the restaurant and I witnessed the opera singer with a strong and powerful voice on my way to the restroom. Live music is always a plus. I will be back to Pagelli’s Italiano in the future for more tasty Italian dishes.
Restaurant Name: Pagelli’s Italiano
Cuisine: Italian
Neighborhood: Wesley Chapel
Address: 2001 Piazza Ave Ste 100 Wesley Chapel, FL 33543
Phone Number: (813) 991-1414
Website: http://tampa.pagellis.com
Carlos Eats 
3 responses to “Pagelli’s Italiano (Wesley Chapel)”
That tiramisu looks crazy. I’ve heard this place is decent but haven’t been there yet which is strange considering it is just a few doors down.
Yum! That tiramisu looks really great – I’ve never seen it with that much chocolate drizzled on top before! However, I bet you anything that Casa Ludovico’s is better! I’m loyal…what can I say? Seriously…I dream about it. And, they even allowed us to buy an entire tray for my grandma’s birthday one year. I may or may not have been caught running my fingers over the empty tray to get every single drop of tiramisu out of there.
Looks like I need to go to Casa Ludovico pronto!