The name of Poco Piatti, means “small plates” – providing with diners the perfect opportunity to share delicious appetizer-size portions around the table with family and friends; A refreshing and interactive way to enjoy a meal, instead of each diner selecting their own entrée, the “Big Plate” option is always available for those who want a more traditional experience.
The menu offers abundant choices, including pizza, salads, seafood, vegetarian dishes, chicken, lamb and beef in all types of presentations and accompaniments. The restaurant boasts a full bar, famous for Sangria –which is loaded with seasonal fruit. I tried half white/half red Sangria, refreshing and perfect for a hot Summer night.
This is the restaurant’s second location – the first one, in Levis Commons, has been successfully operating for the past 12 years. The well-known Hajjar family (Labib Hajjar is the owner of the popular Beirut Restaurant) opened the original Poco Piatti on Monroe Street in 2002. After a few years, Labib’s son, Elias, and daughter-in-law, Joy, opened their own Poco Piatti at the Perrysburg site, closing the Monroe Street location.
“We are so happy to be back in Sylvania – the community is supporting us so far, and we feel it’s a perfect location (at the corner of Central Avenue and McCord Road),” Elias said. “We have a great staff here who really care about our customers.”
The building, which formerly housed Avenue Bistro, has the perfect kitchen, according to Elias. “It’s an open kitchen so customers can look right in and see the work that goes into our preparation.”
Made from scratch
“Everything we do is from scratch – it’s what makes us great.” The atmosphere is relaxed, yet with a touch of elegance with gold chandeliers and Mediterranean murals. A hidden gem, a covered patio, is adorned with outdoor globe lights. This space is perfect for cocktails and appetizers. Diners are greeted with complimentary warm, pita bread straight from a stone oven with a side of hummus. I can’t think of a better way to start a meal, and hearty supply kept coming to our table. The waiter even offered to box some for us to enjoy at home.
We sampled the Shrimp Saganaki, where the sautéed tomatoes, garlic, white wine, fresh oregano and feta cheese create an explosion of flavor. Another “small plate” was the Grilled Baby Lamb Chops, tender and grilled over an open flame.
Our Poco experience continued with two mouth-watering customer favorites – Poco Tips (beef sautéed with lemon and garlic) and Chicken Kabobs, served with rice pilaf. Eagar to try the pizza, it was difficult to choose since they offer seven gourmet selections with ingredients like fresh mozzarella, chopped basil, feta cream, sautéed shrimp, Kalamata olives, goat cheese pesto and homemade alfredo sauce. Gluten free pizzas are also available.
The dessert menu boasted several freshly made items. We tried the Crème Brule, served with fresh strawberries. The rich custard base with caramelized sugar didn’t last long at our table.
Owner Elias Hajjar sums up why you should dine at Poco Piatti: “Order some food you can’t get at other Mediterranean restaurants – we have dishes that only we make and we make them from scratch. You won’t be disappointed.”
6710 Central Ave., Toledo
11:30am- 9:30pm Monday – Thursday
Saturday 4-10pm – Closed Sunday
