December 26, 2024
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Mystery Diner in Henry: It’s no surprise Italian Villa has become local staple

The ‘pizza place’ offers more than the Italian classic

By MYSTERY DINER
Tucked away in Henry is a local staple that has offered its customers no shortage of variety and great-tasting food for many years. The Italian Villa, located at 414 E Park Row St., is in the heart of Henry and definitely worth the stop.

Tucked away in the heart of Henry is a local staple that has offered its customers no shortage of variety and great-tasting food for years. Italian Villa is definitely worth the stop. (Mystery Diner)

Tucked away in the heart of Henry is Italian Villa, a local staple that has offered its customers no shortage of variety and great-tasting food for many years, and is definitely worth the stop.

Italian Villa is open from 3 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, and from 3 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

With newly completed renovations and a long history of serving hungry customers in the area, this “pizza place” offers much more than just that.

Italian Villa’s menu features fresh and homemade pizza, a wide variety of tasty appetizers, specialty sandwiches, salads and fan-favorite tacos.

In my visit to Italian Villa, my guests and I started off with orders of fried pickle chips ($6), mozzarella sticks ($6) and cheese fries ($5.50).

The pickle chips were crispy and served with a side of ranch. They also were available in a spicy flavor, but we elected to stay on the original side.

The fries came hot and fresh, and the mozzarella sticks were definitely something that will bring me back around again and again. These served as a perfect opener to what would become a great followup.

We ordered a large pepperoni pizza ($16.50) to split among us. The pizza was truly fresh and handmade, as a look into the back of the shop showed the owners stretching and preparing dough constantly.

We ordered a large pepperoni pizza ($16.50) to split amongst the table. The pizza was truly fresh and was handmade as a look in the back of the shop shows the owners stretching and preparing the dough constantly.

The large pepperoni pizza was truly fresh and handmade, as a look in the back of the shop showed the owners stretching and preparing dough constantly. (Mystery Diner)

The sauce was incredibly flavorful, and the pizza was topped with a hearty serving of pepperoni and just the right amount of mozzarella cheese. All of this was cooked on top of a crispy dough that, all in all, created a wonderful pie.

Aside from the traditional pizza, we also enjoyed a delectable pizza pocket ($9.50). This specialty contained everything that was great about the original item, but wrapped entirely in a pocket of dough, and big enough to be an entire meal itself.

Aside from the traditional pizza, we also enjoyed a wonderful pizza pocket ($9.50). This specialty item contained everything that was great about the traditional item, but was wrapped entirely in a pocket of dough that was big enough to be an entire meal itself.

A specialty is the wonderful pizza pocket containing everything great about the traditional item, but wrapped entirely in dough, and big enough to be an entire meal. (Mystery Diner)

Wanting to get a full sense of the wide menu, we enjoyed a couple orders of tacos ($7.50) that were very tasty and truly one of a kind.

The tacos were prepared in an almost Italian way with perfectly crisp shells made from the restaurant’s pizza dough. These tacos were served alongside a delicious taco sauce that, when drizzled on the food, was definitely a fan favorite.

The tacos were prepared in an almost ‘Italian’ way with perfectly crisp shells that were made from the restaurant’s pizza dough. These tacos were served alongside a delicious taco sauce that, when topped on the food, was definitely a fan favorite.

The tacos were prepared in an almost Italian way with perfectly crisp shells made from the restaurant’s pizza dough, served alongside a delicious taco sauce in this fan favorite. (Mystery Diner)

To close everything out, we also ordered an Italian beef sandwich ($8). The sandwich was great and served with a side of peppers to accompany it. It was flavorful and contained just the right amount of meat to fill its bun without becoming a mess on the plate.

To close everything out, we also ordered an Italian beef sandwich ($8.00). The sandwich was great and was served with a side of peppers to accompany it. It was flavorful and contained just the right amount of meat to fill its bun without becoming a mess on the plate.

The Italian beef sandwich was great, and served with an accompanying side of peppers. It was flavorful and contained just the right amount of meat to fill its bun without becoming a mess on the plate. (Mystery Diner)

After trying out what Italian Villa has to offer, it’s no surprise this restaurant has been around for a long time and is truly a local staple in the town of Henry.

The Mystery Diner is an employee at Shaw Media. The diner’s identity is not revealed to the restaurant staff before or during the meal. The Mystery Diner visits a different restaurant and then reports on the experience. If the Mystery Diner cannot recommend the establishment, we will not publish a story.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Italian Villa

WHERE: 414 E. Park Row St., Henry

PHONE: 309-364-2863

INFORMATION: Facebook at tinyurl.com/2fhe8bdh