Restaurant Review:

While I doubt the city of Huntington Beach needed any more sit-down Italian restaurants, it did need a less formal one, and Buon Gusto has set out to fill that role.

The restaurant moved to a former fast food building on the corner of Warner Avenue and Bolsa Chica Street. Owner Peter Kourkoulis took what was initially a Kentucky Fried Chicken and then a short-lived grilled chicken place and turned it into a type of fast-food Italian restaurant.

It was not a new concept; Kourkoulis had Buon Gusto in Long Beach for many years before moving to Orange County. He was a block from Long Beach State and provided students with quality Italian food at pretty reasonable prices.

At his new location, he doesn’t have students, but he does have people looking for something fast, affordable and good. The restaurant just celebrated its three-week anniversary, and when I was there a week ago, it was already filled with people.

Many of those people were ordering takeout, but it wasn’t just pizza. In fact, of the five people I saw getting something to go, only one ordered pizza. The others had pasta and salads in their hands as they headed out the door and back to work.

The décor of the restaurant kept with the theme. The simple table and chairs occupy the front of the restaurant, and Kourkoulis has opened up the kitchen so it’s visible.

While there was a casual feeling to the dining room, the menu was definitely not something that was slapped together.

The five-page menu has everything from antipasto to salads to pasta to house specialties to sandwiches to pizza.

All of the dishes were very reasonably priced, and I must admit I was expecting the quality of the food to reflect the price.

It does not. I began with a house salad, and it had iceberg and romaine lettuce with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and marinated vegetables. Fortunately, the person I was with had eaten here before and warned me about the tartness of the celery, cauliflower and carrots. I am glad she did; otherwise I would have been in for a surprise when I popped the cut veggies in my mouth.

I had blue cheese dressing, and that helped take away some of the biting taste of the vegetables that everyone might not be a fan of, but I liked it.

Funny, but I thought that everything but the house salad was reasonably priced. At $4.95, I thought it was a little bit high. I would probably spend another dollar and get the Caesar salad.

While I was eating my salad, I overheard that slices of pepperoni pizza were available. I am glad they provide slices, because so few Italian restaurants do. I ordered one before my main dish came.

The pizza leans more toward a thick crust, but the dough is nice and soft and the crust is definitely not hard. I liked the taste of the crust, and there was light sauce, which I am also a fan of with pizza. The pepperoni and cheese were generous, thus producing a little oil, but that was remedied with a dabbing of a napkin.

The price was certainly right. A large cheese pizza is $10.95 and additional toppings are either $1 or $1.50. I also liked the selection. There was everything from prosciutto, pesto, eggplant, shrimp and artichoke hearts right next to the traditional pepperoni and sausage.

My main dish, manicotti cheese al forno, was recommended by the waitress, and it was an excellent choice. The pasta crepe was cooked al dente, and the cheeses and spices were quite nice. I am also a fan of the meat sauce used at the restaurant, which I found to be a strong yet mellow flavor. For $8.95, I thought my dish was a great deal. It was plentiful and could easily feed two people.

The manicotti was just one of 12 house specials that are offered. There is baked mostaccioli, lasagna, penne pasta with shrimp and a very nice fettuccine primavera.

With the menu as large as it is, this is going to be a restaurant that should keep diners occupied for some time.

Buon Gusto

Address: 5005 Warner Ave., Huntington Beach

Phone: (714) 846-2600

Cuisine: Italian

Specialty dish: One of the 12 house specials

Alcohol served: Beer and wine license pending, free corkage until then

Entrée price range: $8.95 to $17.95

Family friendly: Yes

Credit cards accepted: American Express, MasterCard and Visa

Rating: ***

JOHN REGER reviews local restaurants and may be contacted at Nolimepublishing@aol.com or P.O. Box 2984, Seal Beach, CA 90740.