There’s a new addition to downtown Lake Worth’s restaurant mix, slipping into the old Miami Subs space at the corner of South Dixie Highway and Lake Avenue. It’s Pietro’s Plump Tomato (821 Lake Ave., 561/540-4009), a casual neighborhood Italian eatery with the motto “fresh, local, organic.”Chef-proprietor Pietro Priola has gone with the flow of Lake Worth’s relaxed, unpretentious, green-oriented vibe, keeping his restaurant’s décor simple, its dishes familiar and moderately priced, and its mouth where its eco-consciousness is, using organic produce, all-natural grass-fed beef, free-range and hormone-free poultry.
The modestly appointed, tile-floored dining room boasts a small bar-counter fronting the menu scrawled on wall-mounted blackboards, an abundance of plate-glass windows, and a small market area where the restaurant’s house-made tomato sauce, imported olive oil, and fresh organic herbs and produce can be purchased.
The menu lists a handful of starters and salads, panini from meatball to vegan black bean burger, a half-dozen pastas, and a selection of pizzas and calzones from the brick pizza oven. There’s even a kiddie menu.
Pietro’s also does something I wish more restaurants would do: offer most dishes in small and large portion, with prices to match. And speaking of prices, the most expensive dishes top out at $16, with the vast majority between $9 and $14 so even skinny wallets an afford a plump tomato.
