Early in May 2012, a newcomer arrived at 5416 Mayfield Road, on the Lyndhurst-Mayfield Heights border, in the spot formerly known as Tastee Bites/La Pita. Allow me to introduce you to Bella Cibo, which translates to "Beautiful Food." Though not exactly "mom & pop" - this "son & pop" business is serving up some fun eats at very easy-to-swallow prices.
Owner John and his dad Lou offer a modest menu that relies on good ingredients, many of which are house-made (but not all, and at these price points, it's understandable). John's Uncle Al is also in the kitchen, making this a true family affair. My first taste was a take-out order of Cheesesteak, Whiz wit as it were. Thinly sliced ribeye was cooked to order on the grill and topped with nicely caramelized onions, peppers, and Cheese Whiz. All that was missing was the Amoroso roll to evoke the authentic Philly Cheesesteak - this was an Orlando sub roll, which will never be mistaken for the real thing, but was a reasonable substitute. Very tasty, at a tasty price of $6.
Next up was a turkey club. Bella Cibo uses a good quality, name brand turkey breast product that is neither overly processed nor salty (and of course I failed to write the name down).
My next visit came by surprise, so I didn't have a camera to shoot my gyro sandwich. The photo below, of a dining companion's gyro, is from a later lunch. I really loved my gyro (a steal as a lunch special at $5, as it was piled high with Kronos meat, lots of freshly torn lettuce, onions and tomato). But John needs to sell a lot more of them to keep the spit turning all of the time without drying out the meat (my sandwich was perfection; I noticed that by the second meal, they'd cut the cone in half so as to only use half at a time and keep the other half fresh, and they weren't running the spit until an order was placed, I would expect to keep the meat from temperature abuse and dryness). So - we all need to eat more gyro at Bella Chibo! They serve it two ways - the "traditional" shown below, and Philly Style, which I would expect much resembles my cheesesteak, above, but with gyro meat instead of ribeye.
My sandwich that day was the only thing I've eaten at Bella Cibo so far that I didn't care for. Go down the street to Smoked at DiCillo's Tavern if you want BBQ.
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| BBQ Pork Sandiwch |
The best deal in the house is the Pasta Dinner, regularly priced at $5.50. But on Monday and Tuesday, it is an even better deal, priced at $4.75. The meal includes choice of cooked-to-order pasta (spaghetti or penne), topped with your choice of sauce: marinara, meat sauce (which is essentially the house-made marinara with broken up house-made meatballs in it - delicious!), Alfredo or Aglio e Olio (garlic and olive oil), a small container of grated cheese, a side salad (huzzah for freshly torn lettuce - when I complimented Lou for this, he made it clear that there would never be bagged salad served at Bella Cibo), and garlic bread.
The massive plate of pasta and sauce wound up making for not one, but two very satisfying lunches!
Bella Cibo also offers catering. There is eat-in seating for about 10, and bottled water and soft drinks are available (but no fresh brewed ice tea). In addition to the fixed $4.75 Daily Specials (Pasta Dinner Monday-Tuesday, 1/4 Pound Burger and Fries Wednesday-Thursday, and any Cold Sub with 3 Toppings Friday-Saturday), there are usually two or three additional specials every day. Several sweets are also offered, including a gooey-looking chocolate brownie, though I haven't sampled any yet.
On the down side, given the many nearby bakeries, I wish that they would use better bread products, but my guess is that they need to go Orlando to make their incredibly reasonable price points. I have not tried the chicken cutlet or sausage yet, but I will! Also on my "to try" list is the all beef Chicago-style hotdog for $4. Bella Cibo also offers burgers cooked to order, hot and cold subs, salads, and appetizer items.
Bella Cibo offers inexpensive, quality eats, from a locally owned and operated perspective, which is where the most fun food comes from! They are open Monday-Saturday 10:30am to 8pm, their phone # is 440-605-9400.
