This Old-School Colorado Italian Joint Serves Giant Portions Locals Have Loved For Decades

A restaurant does not need celebrity buzz when half the neighborhood already has a favorite order.

This family-run Italian spot has built its reputation the slower, stronger way: generous portions, familiar recipes, and the kind of menu people remember long after dinner.

Think calzones with real heft, meatball subs that refuse to be dainty, and lasagna capable of changing whatever meal plan you had five minutes earlier.

In Englewood, Colorado, that straightforward approach still draws people who care more about a satisfying plate than whatever food trend is having its moment online.

Prices stay approachable, portions stay serious, and nobody seems interested in reinventing dinner for attention. That is exactly the charm.

You come hungry, order confidently, and leave understanding why regulars keep returning.

Among the countless newer dining options across Colorado, places like this survive because comfort, value, and consistency never really go out of style.

The Corner Spot That Ends The Where Should We Eat Debate

There is a rare and beautiful moment in any household when the dinner argument collapses because someone says a name and everybody nods. In Englewood, Colorado, that name is often Rico’s Pizzeria & Italian Kitchen, parked at 3500 S Broadway with the quiet confidence of a place that has never needed a gimmick.

The building does not shout. It sits on its corner like a neighbor who has lived there long enough to stop explaining themselves.

What tips you off is the recognition factor. Mention it around town and someone will immediately tell you what they always order, usually before you have finished asking.

Around 1,500 visitors have weighed in online, landing it at a 4.6 star average, which is a suspiciously high number until you actually eat there.

Why It Matters: A dependable local pick saves you from the scrolling spiral of menus and mediocre guesses. Decision relief is an underrated form of happiness.

Quick Tip: Doors open at 10:45 AM Monday through Saturday, and Sunday is closed, so plan your craving accordingly. Call 303-781-0541 if you want to be certain before you drive.

Big Plates, Small Prices, Zero Fuss

The promise here is refreshingly simple: you will not leave hungry, and your wallet will survive the encounter.

Visitors describe lasagna portions so large they photographed them next to a phone just to prove the scale, served with salad and bread and priced like it was still a different decade. That combination of size and value is the whole headline.

Five dollar options come up again and again, including a sausage or meatball sub or a generous slice of cheese or pepperoni. Lunch specials get mentioned with the enthusiasm people usually reserve for finding money in a coat pocket.

Recipes have stayed the same for years, which regulars treat as a feature rather than a flaw. Consistency, it turns out, is its own kind of flavor.

Best For: Anyone who wants a full, satisfying Italian meal without a long menu debate or a long receipt.

Quick Verdict: Easy win, low effort, high satisfaction. You order, you eat too much, you take the rest home and feel clever about tomorrow’s lunch.

That is the entire pitch, and honestly, it does not need embellishment.

Walking In Off South Broadway With A Colorado Appetite

Picture it: you have spent the morning running errands along a busy Colorado stretch of road, the sun doing that high-altitude thing where it feels bright and cool at the same time, and your stomach has officially taken over negotiations.

You pull into the Rico’s Pizzeria & Italian Kitchen lot, which the restaurant actually owns, meaning no circling the block and no long march in the wind. Regulars call that parking lot one of the great small mercies of the place.

Inside, it is snug. Visitors politely note that the dining room is small and tight, which is code for cozy in the honest sense, elbows and all.

Someone greets you. Someone else is pulling pies.

The whole thing moves with the rhythm of a kitchen that has done this a few thousand times.

Insider Tip: If the room looks packed, carryout is a smooth exit strategy. One group ordered a dozen pies for a set pickup time and reported them ready on schedule and still warm.

Pro Tip: There is limited outdoor seating, which a few visitors have mentioned, so it is worth a look on a nice day.

Calzones That Built A Local Reputation

Ask around and one word surfaces more than any other: calzones. They come up in well over a hundred visitor comments, which in restaurant terms is basically a landslide election.

Sausage calzones get their own dedicated fans. One longtime visitor, going back to 2011, insists these are the best in the Denver metro area and brings guests specifically to prove the point.

Not everyone gushes uniformly, and that is worth saying plainly. One visitor found the pepperoni and sausage calzone quite greasy and felt the marinara ran thin rather than clinging to the food.

Honest feedback like that actually helps you order smarter. If you prefer a thicker sauce experience, ask about it or plan to use the dressings people rave about instead.

Best Strategy: First-timers can split a calzone between two people and add a salad, which stretches the meal and lets you sample more of the kitchen.

Quick Tip: The creamy Italian dressing has a cult following, and visitors say staff will sell it in different sizes if you ask nicely.

The Meatball Sub Locals Have Been Ordering For Years

Halfway through this list, here is the item that turns casual visitors into repeat customers with alarming speed.

The meatball sub gets mentioned dozens of times, and the stories attached to it are surprisingly tender. One visitor remembers parents in the roofing business bringing one home whenever a job landed near Broadway, and says it still tastes the way memory promised.

Another went all in on their very first visit, skipping the usual slice-first strategy, and came away describing bread as crunchy as any they had eaten, served open faced and thoroughly satisfying.

Bread is made in house, which explains a lot about why the subs land so well. Sausage subs and the chicken parm sub have their own loyal following too.

Common Mistakes To Avoid: Do not order a full entree plus a sub plus sides unless you enjoy defeat. Portions here are not shy, and one visitor admitted to over-ordering and then heroically finishing anyway.

Best For: A fast, filling lunch that costs less than most drive-through combos and tastes like someone actually cared.

New York Leaning Pies With Their Own Colorado Character

Dough and sauce are where pizza arguments are won, and this kitchen seems to know it.

Visitors at Rico’s Pizzeria & Italian Kitchen compare the pies to New York style while noting they have a character of their own, with tasty toppings and a cheese ratio that does not bury everything underneath it. Double pepperoni, a smoky option and a supreme all get name-checked.

Crust earns steady praise. One longtime customer, going back to 2009, singles out the Bo pizza for its crust and reports the quality has held firm across the years.

Pizza by the slice is available, which is the correct move when you want a fast bite rather than a full commitment. Stromboli shows up on the wish lists too.

Quick Tip: Ranch and the house dressings come up constantly, so grab extra if dipping crust is your ritual.

Planning Advice: Friday and Saturday run a bit later, until 8:30 PM, while Monday through Thursday close at 8 PM. Sunday is closed entirely, so weekend cravings need a Saturday plan.

Prices on pies run slightly higher than the subs, and visitors still call them worth it.

Turning One Meal Into An Easy Englewood Errand Day

Here is the shape of a genuinely low-effort outing, and the reason this spot fits so many kinds of days.

Families do fine here because pizza and subs need no translation and kids rarely stage a protest. Couples get an unfussy sit-down meal where nobody has to dress up or pretend to study a wine list.

Solo visitors can grab a slice and be back in the car in minutes.

Make it a post-errand reward. Knock out your Saturday to-do list, roll into the lot right in town, eat something enormous, then take a short stroll to shake off the food coma before driving home.

Who This Is For: Roadside flavor hunters, nostalgia seekers, budget-minded families and anyone who values a place that has stayed itself for decades.

Who This Is Not For: Diners chasing a spacious, modern room or a sprawling menu of trendy plates.

The core value is simple. Big portions, fair prices, warm greetings and a family-run kitchen holding a 4.6 star average across roughly 1,500 visitor reviews.

Tell a friend the name, and watch the dinner debate end mid-sentence.