Harvest Pizzeria moved into Zoe Cafe’s old spot over the summer, replacing the former cafe with a new, crafty Italian restaurant.
As a whole, Harvest Pizzeria fits in very well with the Bexley scene — it’s homey, quiet, and seemingly very upscale in terms of atmosphere. The food is wonderful, and my first visit was exceptional.
Upon walking in, my colleague and I were seated immediately. The restaurant was quiet and tasteful, and the service was prompt. Our server mentioned the lunch special, which is available from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and features any 9-inch pizza for $8.50 (which during dinner run up to $18.50 for a larger size) and side salads for $2.50.
We each got a salad to start; I got a Kale Caesar and my colleague got a Mean Green salad. The kale caesar was made with local lacinato kale and was tossed in a house caesar dressing topped with hazelnuts and a house caesar dressing.
The Mean Green was a mixture of arugula, spinach, watercress, napa and red cabbage, topped with snow peas and local sprouts, pepitas, and an avocado goddess dressing.
The salads came out before our pizzas did, and the timing was executed in a way that provided enough time to eat the salads before everything else arrived at the table.
I ordered one of the specialty pizzas, the Spicy Yuma. There are also creative (build-your-own) pizzas available on the lunch special. The Spicy Yuma was made with a gouda/havarti blend, mozzarella, and provolone cheeses. It was topped with chorizo, jalapeños, corn, roasted red pepper, and chipotle-spiked tomato sauce.
The Spicy Yuma was done perfectly — it had the perfect amount of spice without being so overwhelming that it overpowers everything else on the dish. The different cheeses blended nicely, and the toppings were well distributed and paired well with each other.
My colleague ordered the White Pizza and was impressed by it. Topped with black peppercorn ricotta, gouda, basil, roasted garlic cloves, and other herbs, the pizza was the pizza of all of your monochrome aesthetic dreams. The biggest complaint that we had about the White Pizza was the giant pieces of garlic on top — they could have been chopped into something smaller than cloves so it wouldn’t be overwhelming.
The menu is not limited to salad and pizza. The restaurant also offers various sandwiches, such as the Fried Yardbird, burgers, and small plates like poke tuna. Additionally, there are entrees available after 5 p.m., such as Bavette Steak.
Harvest Pizzeria also has a selection of various wines, beers, and cocktails, as well as refreshing beverages such as artisan teas and Tractor Beverage CO soft drinks.
As a whole, Harvest Pizzeria is a calm, relaxing, comforting place to stop for lunch. The service was excellent, the food was filling (even for just ordering the lunch special) and the atmosphere was wonderful.
