HELLERTOWN, Pa. – It’s a family affair at the Lehigh Valley’s newest Italian restaurant, offering gourmet pizzas, pasta dishes and other specialties.
Vitale’s Italian Restaurant, serving authentic Italian cuisine, opened about a week ago at 1120 Main St. in Hellertown, according to Sara Vitale, who operates the establishment with her parents, Vinny and Maria Vitale.
The Hellertown site previously housed another Italian eatery, Rocco’s Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant.
Vitale’s Italian Restaurant operates at 1120 Main St. in Hellertown.
Ryan Kneller
The Vitales have been in the restaurant industry for more than 30 years, Sara said.
Vinny and Maria previously operated other Lehigh Valley restaurants, including Vinny V’s Pizzeria in Easton and Vinny’s Pizza in Upper Macungie Township, which continue to operate under new ownership.
At their newest establishment in Hellertown, the Vitales are serving up a wide array of freshly prepared Italian specialties, including appetizers such as bruschetta, garlic knots, rice balls and antipasto skewers (mortadella, soppressata, prosciutto, grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil and balsamic glaze); and baked dishes such as manicotti, meat lasagna, gnocchi margherita and veal parmigiana.
“We’re very excited to be serving a new community,” Sara said.
“We’re featuring a lot of traditional items as well as new items for people to enjoy. We have regular cheese pizza, Sicilian pizza and a lot of gourmet pizzas, which all feature homemade dough and sauces. We’re also using specialty Italian meats like mortadella and soppressata in our hoagies, which are available on seeded or non-seeded Italian rolls.”
Vitale’s Italian Restaurant operates at 1120 Main St. in Hellertown.
Ryan Kneller
Around two dozen gourmet pizzas, starting at $15.95 and available in a variety of sizes, include options such as taco, meat lovers, veggie, 4 cheese, penne vodka, chicken bacon ranch and pesto prosciutto.
There’s also a stuffed pizza, featuring meatballs, sausage, hamburger, pepperoni, bacon and mozzarella cheese.
More than a dozen hot sandwiches include varieties such as The Godfather (chicken cutlet, ribeye steak, Cooper cheese, mozzarella bites and vodka sauce), The Main St. (Italian sausage, broccoli rabe, provolone cheese and fried onion) and The Palermo Heat (chicken cutlet, cooked prosciutto, ricotta, jalapeno long hots and hot honey).
“Our hot sandwiches are really delicious, and we’re using premium ingredients,” Sara said. “For example, for our cheesesteaks, we’re using fresh ribeye beef and Cooper cheese.”
Cold sandwiches, which also can also be served as wraps, include options such as The Traditional Italian (ham, salami, capicola, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, oil and vinegar), The Vitale’s Clubhouse (turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato and garlic aioli) and The Vitale Special (prosciutto, soppressata, mortadella, provolone, roasted peppers, arugula, oil and balsamic glaze).
“So far, all of our hot and cold sandwiches have been really popular,” Sara said. “Our Sicilian sandwich has been a top seller.”
Other menu highlights include a wide variety of soups, salad, stromboli and burgers on brioche buns.
More than a dozen pasta dishes, served with bread, include spaghetti cacio e pepe, chicken Marsala over linguine, chicken Francese over fettuccini and shrimp or calamari fra diavolo over linguine, among others.
Located next to Aloha Jay’s Malasadas, Vitale’s Italian Restaurant occupies space that previously housed Rocco’s Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant for many years.
Rocco’s owner Paul Zullo recently retired from the restaurant industry, Sara said.
Vitale’s offers seating for around 30 guests at booths and tables with chairs.
Cosmetic updates, including new furniture and wall paint, will be implemented over the next couple of months, Sara said.
Vitale’s Italian Restaurant, which also offers takeout, catering and delivery through Slice, is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays. Info: 610-838-1414.
Dining and Cooking