Mentor restaurant, Mama Roberto's, named best Italian by Cleveland Magazine

MENTOR, Ohio - The smells of marinara, pizza crust, peppers and onions are the first thing you'll notice when walking into Mama Roberto's in Mentor. The next emotion will likely be laughter after talking to owner and funnyman Rick Rhein (pronounced Ryan).

"Big portions, great food and a family type atmosphere, a lot of fun," Rick answered when asked about how his restaurant has found success. "We didn't take ourselves serious so nobody else did either and we just had a good time with it."

The good times have been rolling at the restaurant in Mentor for 12 years and things just got a little bit brighter. Mama Roberto's is Cleveland Magazine 's 2011 Silver Spoon Award winner for Best Italian Restaurant.

"It's the best pizza I've ever had, the best chicken marsala I've ever had and the portions are just enormous," said frequent lunch customer, Melissa Giancola. "I always have some to take home for dinner."

The family restaurant is run by Rick and his wife, Renee, whom the restaurant is named for (her maiden name is Roberto). All four of the couple's children also work for the eatery.

At any given time in the kitchen, you'll find pizza, chicken parm, stuffed peppers, cavatelli and the signature dish, Pasta Roberto (sausage, peppers, onions and mushrooms served over pasta marinara).

Rhein claimed that his pizza is the best around and with a tip of the cap to Geraci's (University Heights) and Mamma Santo's (Cleveland - Little Italy), said that local chain pizza delivery guys order his pizza to take home and eat. He said it with a wry smile, but it's clear that the story is true and that he thinks his pizza is second to none.

Mama Roberto's is located at 8658 Mentor Avenue in Mentor. Rick and his crew will participate in the 17th Annual Cleveland Magazine Silver Spoon Awards Party on May 26 from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown.

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Pete Kenworthy anchors Good Morning Cleveland. You can follow him on Facebook and Twitter . You can also email Pete at kenworthy@wews.com .