I am on a mission to taste my way through southern Fairfax County and I've contributed some Springfield reviews over the past year. I have eaten a few times at Pane e Vino in what appears to be the Lorton Town Center, if that's what it's called, but it sure looks like it's trying to be one of those now ubiquitous Town Centers popping up everywhere. DR will have to expand the restaurant guide to include a Lorton listing now.

Pane e Vino is family owned, and therefore checks the box of not being a chain, so that's the first positive sign. It has its own pizza oven, so that's the second positive sign. It has become so successful that it bought the Americanized Chinese place next door and expanded into it, so that's the third positive sign. And I haven't even gotten into the food yet.

As for the food, well, there are many family owned Italian places from Burke to Lorton, all of them pretty good, from Rafagino's in Burke to Vinny's in Lorton, with Victor's next to the Springfield Whole Foods and San Vito down on Rolling and Braddock. All very good and all very reasonably priced, and none of them near the quality of Pane e Vino. This place is now my go-to Italian restaurant south of Fairfax.

Dinner starts with an almost-amouse of a three tastes to go with the fresh bread basket. In one ceramic rectangle was three mini-bowls of olives, olive oil with parmesan, and marinara that tasted fresh made. With the warm breads, this was a hearty start. We accompanied this with a bottle of chardonnay off the daily special list, and since they didn't have the one we ordered, they gave us a more expensive one for the $22 special price.

Tonight we ate off the specials, more or less. Girlfriend had the blackened rockfish, covered with marinara, spinach and olives, which to this day is the best rockfish dish I have ever eaten in my life. Absolutely cooked to perfection. I had the chicken frescia, which is a boneless breast of chicken pounded thin and covered with tomato sauce, spinach and mozzarella, served with a side of pasta and red sauce. To die for, and cooked to a juicy and tender doneness that is difficult to achieve for white meat of chicken.

This place also has a pizza menu that looks tempting, and with the aforementioned pizza oven, it is one of the specialties of the house. I am torn here, because pizza would make a nice noon meal when split with a friend, and across the street is the Fireside grill, which has some tempting grilled sandwiches and is the subject of another review. And when I think of pizza in the southern part of the county, I am drawn to Delia's....oh well, maybe pizza is another topic for another time.

We couldn't have left more satisfied, and a dinner for two (without dessert) with a bottle of wine and tax and tip came to just over $60. I will continue to treat this place as my go-to Italian restaurant this side of Dolce Vita, Da Domenico, Mama's or Bonaroti.

[I'm absolutely going to, because of this fine, descriptive post that makes me want to head out to Pane e Vino and try to produce a similar experience to what you had. It's on my list, not just to include in the dining guide, but as a place to enjoy a full meal in the near future. Thanks for writing your thoughts.]

Pane e Vino - Ritorante e Pizzeria

Decided to check this place out Wednesday night as it is only 4 miles from my house. Cannot say that I agree with the original review above, but I am biased when it comes to Italian joints.

The 3 bites that some with the Bertucci like (read slightly undercooked) rolls were pretty good. The olive oil with Parmesan is loaded with garlic, which is never a bad thing and the marinara was had a good kick of oregano.

We ordered a main each, a mushroom and onion pizza and the veal parmesan figuring that the basic dishes would give us a good idea of the quality.

The pizza was pretty good, although it was slightly undercooked in the center. The leftovers that were reheated for a snack during the T-Day preparations were still tasty. My only suggestion is that they get the oven hotter. I certainly don't agree that Delia's pizza is better, with its flavorless crust and all. Neither of these places can compare with the pizza joints in the city, but they are certainly more convenient when at home.

The veal was rather tough and chewy and tasted like your typical frozen breaded veal. I don't think it helped that it was sitting under the heat lamp for a few minutes as they waited for the pizza to cook. The dish was saved by the garlicky marinara that covered the meat and the poorly drained pasta side.

The wine and beer list is nothing special, the best beer being the Sam Adams Seasonal.

I will be back, but will probably stick to the pizza and tell them to make it well done. If this is the best Italian place in Southern Fairfax county then I am glad that I have not bothered trying the others.