Mama Mia

We often hear the complaint that there’s a dearth of good Italian joints in Dallas . Whether that’s true or not, who knows? What is for certain is that Lake Highlands has recently been blessed with an excellent new entry in this culinary genre.

What might surprise customers, however, is that Napoli’s Pizza and Restaurant, which took over Le Peep’s space six months ago, is run by a family that emigrated to Dallas from Kosovo. Still, young Adrian Shala, who’s been in the States only a few years, and his veteran restaurant-business uncle, Mike Krasniq, know how to do Italian right.

The creamy chicken scarparela, pictured here, bursts with the flavor of fresh mushrooms, scallions and mozzarella cheese. And pizza is the house specialty, with everything from deep-dish Sicilian, to spinach pizza with a red or white sauce, to your basic any-way-you-want-it thin crust. Other menu offerings include chicken and veal dishes, hot and cold sub sandwiches and homemade pastas, all at incredibly reasonable prices.

Though the atmosphere is about what you’d expect of a former Le Peep location, it’s a cheerful place to eat stellar food.