Journal photo / Sandor Bodo
PIZZA, calzones and garlic bread, top left, are laden with warm toppings and fillings, but the dough makes them divine.

Campanella's: Go for the dough

By MERIDITH FORD
Journal Restaurant Critic

• See the menu.

CRANSTON -- Some time today, you'll be thinking that something other than turkey might be a good idea. You might even think that you never want to eat again.

Trust me -- that feeling will pass. Tomorrow, say, when the restaurant reopens and you can come up for air, Campanella's is an excellent alternative to turkey, in-laws and cranberry sauce.

Campanella's is a great little restaurant, favored by -- among others -- Peter Reinhart, award-winning author of the new book American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza. Open for the past seven years, it's in a strip mall, but don't let the location fool you: inside are warm, rustic tones of yellow and green; trendy high-backed dark-brown banquettes; slate floors.

Campanella's is family-owned, and the feeling of family extends from the front door to the tables: the service is efficient, but down-to-earth.

Yet what sets it apart is the dough.

All the breads, from the pizza crusts to the garlic bread, are made on the premises by Richard Campanella, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Sabrina. He learned to make bread from his father-in-law, Thomas Frank, former owner of the Big Cheese on Reservoir Avenue.

Good dough makes good bread. And pizza. And bruschetta.

And the calzones, well, they are definitely not leftover turkey. There are so many -- 18 -- that they are numbered deli-style on the menu. (Actually, there is no No. 4, because it's listed under salads. It's a spinach pie stuffed with a Greek salad. That's about as much a salad as Paris Hilton is the girl next door.) Plus, any of the hot sandwiches, from tuna to veal parmigiana, can be ordered as a calzone.

It's hard to describe the decadent texture of Campanella's version of this Italian foldover pie. The dough is steaming hot and doughy on the inside, yet outside slightly crisp, almost like a light doughnut or fritter. When filled with lettuce, tomato and rich meats such as salami and baked ham, as well as slices of provolone, this peasant's pocket sandwich becomes regal.

Add to it the mouth-puckering tang of sliced banana peppers and the result reaches heavenly status. It's the perfect Dagwood, Italian style -- the kind of sandwich you crave while watching Leno.

Pasta dishes and garlic bread

When I went to Campanella's, I went for the dough -- the pizzas, the calzones. But I found there are lots of pasta dishes, too, and they are well worth trying. The lasagna has a house-made, seasoned, sweet tomato sauce -- nothing fancy -- with lots of layers of cheese and meat. It's gooey and rich, the kind that creates strings of cheese from fork to mouth. The portion could feed five people. (So now you'll have more leftovers to choose from.)

And since fresh bread seems to be the tradition at Campanella's, bruschetta is another biggie on the menu, only Campanella's isn't pretentious enough to call it that. They actually call it what it is: garlic bread. There's garlic bread covered in sauteed mushrooms. Garlic bread covered in sauteed peppers, and garlic bread covered in cheese and tomatoes. Or you can go all the way -- as I did -- and have garlic bread covered in all of them.

It's an enormously gratifying dish, these butter-and-herb covered slices of brick-thick, toasty bread, smothered in sliced, pan-seared meaty mushrooms, loads of red peppers, sharp feta cheese and sliced tomatoes.

Even an iceberg lettuce salad, modest and unassuming, is elevated to great heights at Campanella's. That's because of the house vinaigrette -- it's tart and creamy, with loads of parsley, basil and a tangy back bite. I found out from our server, who was as reliable as the food, that bottles of the yummy stuff can be purchased at the register. I grabbed a bottle to take home.

Toppings galore

And at last, there is what I came for in the first place -- the pizza. Toppings galore, including tomato and cheese, fresh Italian sausage, chopped spinach, artichoke hearts, anchovies and the usual pepperoni, grace the menu. You can choose between white or whole wheat crusts. There are grilled or baked pizzas. And there are house favorites, too, such as the "European," a combination of spinach, chopped tomato, onions, house dressing, and feta and Cheddar cheeses.

One of these, "Dean's favorite," is smothered in slices of sage-and-cumin-laced sausage, mushrooms, sliced onions, feta cheese and big, juicy cherry tomatoes. The crust is thin, with a sharp crispiness to its bottom, yet plenty of rich doughiness underneath the ample toppings.

And even a simple cheese pizza -- perfect for hungry 6-year-olds -- is way above par, smothered in mild cheeses and sweet tomato sauce.

The desserts seem to be the only thing Campanella's kitchen doesn't make. (Well, I don't think they make the beer.) Still, a slice of creamy, chocolate-covered cheesecake, graham cracker crust and all -- was just as good as if they had. It was the only thing all night small enough to finish.

Dough is at the heart of any good pizza, and dough is a very personal thing. Pizza is a very personal thing. Turkey is a very personal thing.

Sounds like the makings of beautiful weekend.

IF YOU LIKE Peurini's, Sicilia's or Bob n Timmy's Grille, you'll like Campanella's.

The bill for two at Campanella's might look something like this:
Two beers: $7
Garlic bread: $5.95
Dean's favorite pizza: $9.50
Italian cold-cut calzone: $3.95
Chocolate-covered cheesecake: $3.75
Tax: $2.41
Tip: $6
Total: $38.56