Original Italian Pizza

Reviews

• Angela L.

  star star star star star 20 October 2026

  Five stars for the food and service. Homemade fresh bread to die for. Soft, fluffy with crunchy crust. Everything made from scratch fresh everyday , owner on premise,  is Italian. Red sauce is good. Wonderful homemade Italian dressing Delicious homemade cheesecake too. The restaurant itself is a typical mom/pop place, nothing fancy, not as clean as it could be, sticky table, typical decor of an Italian place, but you're there for the food and it does not disappoint. In the center of a town that looks like a ghost town. Very busy, does a lot of take out business which tells you the locals love it too.

• John F.

  star star star star star 18 October 2026

  And I quote, "five miles off the interstate, what are you crazy!".    Wow, so glad we did.  Great food and service.  True Italian food!

• Chris C.

  star star star star star 11 October 2026

  Original in BV is one of my favorite go-to Italian restaurants for warm comfort food. Buena Vista is lacking in restaurants, but it's a small town/village and justified.
  
  Make no mistake, this is not farm-to-table pretentious BS. The decor is bare bones, but I'm fine with that. I know many diners worry about decor....I care more about food. The pasta dishes and salads are my favorites. Side salad with the meal and also Greek salad are standouts. Large Greek salad alone is a bit pricey, but worth it. The bread is outstanding and homemade, but alas, I'm not a bread person. However, my relatives, when in the area, go nuts over the warm bread.
  
  The proprietress is incredibly kind and sweet and takes pride in the recipes and food served. The staff is also very nice and not stuffy nor off-putting. No one will kick you out of Original. *cough, cough - Looking at you Lexington* Everyone is welcome and I love that. All people are welcome.
  
  More about the food: Pasta dishes are served piping hot/warm (a good thing and should always be served hot) and the pizza is probably the best I've tried in the area. I'm very picky and high-maintenance about pizza and its crust. (I favor Chicago tavern thin crust, but you can't find that around here.) I used to be a huge fan of Crozet Pizza, but with new owners, that's now pizza soup. Again, I'm very picky and HM about my crust. If you want a crispy crust, ask them to keep in the oven a bit longer, but not burnt. Take a look at their deck ovens....that's what makes a good pizza and crust. You see these same deck ovens at Vito and Nick's in Chicago - home to great thin crust. Original does not do thin crust, but if I have to eat NY style or similar, this is the only place I'll go for pizza in Virginia.
  
  Pizza tip that you all may already know: For crispy crust, do bare minimum in toppings - not including cheese. So cheese and sauce of course, but don't add a million other toppings, just 1 or 2 more. Ask to keep in deck oven a bit longer. Are you familiar with Barstool Sports on Youtube? I feel like Dave and Frankie would love to try this pizza.
  
  I haven't tried the sandwiches. I'm a pasta and pizza guy and Original in Buena Vista excels.
  
  Yes, the weave back to the WC is a bit odd and weird, but that's the layout of the building.
  
  I love driving to BV and that's what's amazing about our locals. You won't find many Lexintonians going to BV. Nose up in the air. But Buena Vista is actually Rockbridge's hidden secret. When you hit Food Lion in BV, that's a million dollar view. (Actually a billion dollar view. Reminds me of certain countries in Caribbean where small mountains reach down to meet clear blue water. Sadly, no clear blue water in BV ) That's the sort of view when on road trips as kids, your parents would wake you up in the back seat and say: "Kids, Kids! Wake up! This is our vacation view." I love going to Original and seeing the "vacation" view.
  
  My favorite Italian comfort food in the area.

• Joey S.

  star star star star star_border 8 October 2026

  Had a great meal at the Original ITALIAN Restaurant, a meatball parm sub on homemade bread! Dorina was super sweet and helpful with special requests.

• David S.

  star star star star star 29 September 2026

  We are from out of town. This restaurant was rated very good so we gave it a try and so glad we did! We ordered pizza but ordered cheesecake first. We had plain cheeses and strawberry cheesecake and it was some of the best I have had. Then the cheese pizza with garlic arrived. It was was very good too. So glad we stopped here!!