If you’ve been longing to go to a restaurant where the food tastes like a home-cooked meal rather than mass-produced, flavorless or dull, then Casa Bianca Pizza Pie in Eagle Rock is where you want to go.

If you happen to be driving east on Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock, this family-owned Italian restaurant might go unnoticed because of its low-key, outdated look.

But don’t let this look fool or discourage you from trying what’s inside.

Since the restaurant is located in a residential neighborhood, finding a parking spot might take a while. After finally finding one, you will for sure have worked up an appetite. Now you’re more than ready to eat, but there’s one major letdown before you get the chance to devour some delicious italian food: the wait.

Because the restaurant is very popular among devoted regulars, and not too large, be prepared to wait up to an hour on any night, especially on the weekends, just to get seated. You can always skip the wait by making reservations; but reservations are only accepted for parties of six or more.

While you wait in the small waiting area, you can’t help but notice the modest dÇcor. The walls are decorated with headshots of stars who have visited the restaurant, along with old maps of Eagle Rock. The linoleum floors and red and white checkered vinyl table cloths make it seem as if not much has changed since the restaurant opened in 1955.

After standing for awhile, crammed next to other people, your name finally gets called.

Once you are seated, you begin to feel very comfortable. The dim lighting, atmosphere and crowd create a right-at-home feeling.
As you take a look at the menu, there are over 20 scrumptious Italian dishes to choose from. These dishes range from lasagna, spaghetti, homemade sausage, breaded eggplant, to the restaurant’s specialty: thin-crust pizza.

The pizza is absolutely exceptional. Whether you choose to stick with the traditional white flour version, which is thin and crispy, or
the whole wheat crust, you
will be satisfied.

You also have a great choice of toppings to choose from, including pepperoni, roasted garlic, mushrooms, olives and spinach.

Because most people are dying of hunger by the time they are seated, the menu gives you an option to upgrade your meal to a dinner size. By doing so, not only do you get a salad or minestrone soup (which is to die for) before the meal, but you also get coffee and delicious Italian ice cream after the meal. This is a pretty good deal considering you can get all of this for
under $15.

When you go to a restaurant, you want to feel as if you’re the only table your server has. You want plenty of attention and of course, great professional service. However, you might not get this at Casa Bianca. Most servers appear to be young and seem to lack the experience a customer would expect when dining out.

In the end, after going through the hassle of trying to find a parking spot, waiting what seems to be an eternity to get a seat and possibly sitting through not so great service, it all seems to be worth it once you’ve tried the great Italian food. Casa Bianca does have take-out and only accepts cash.

Casa Bianca is at 1650 Colorado Blvd. in Eagle Rock and is open Tuesday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to midnight and Friday and Saturday from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Rating: * * * (out of four).