Michael A's keeps up its wonderful Italian flavor

The Lunch Bunch had a hankering for Italian cuisine, so we settled on Michael A's in Oakmont as our destination.

We hadn't been to Michael A's for years, and we recognized the digs as soon as we walked in and chose a table. The downstairs dining area hasn't changed since we last ate there. A large bar takes up a good part of the room, but there still are plenty of tables from which to choose.

The Scuilli family business has been in operation since 1991 when Michael Angelo Scuilli bought the restaurant. It's named for him.

We were saddened to see a skimpy lunch crowd for a Friday afternoon. Hopefully, this Oakmont established eatery does more business at dinner when dining is available upstairs as well as on the first floor.

Our crew started with French Fried Zucchini ($4), four thin planks of breaded zucchini dusted with romano or parmesan cheese and served with a chunky marinara.

We chose one of the many specials of the day: Eggplant Lasagna ($8.50). The dish arrived piping hot with lots of sauce and cheese covering the thin strips of breaded eggplant layered with ricotta cheese. Our super fresh roll on the side would have been great for lapping up some of the rich sauce, but shame on us for pigging out on our whole roll while enjoying our side salad. Although our bread basket was refilled, we were too stuffed for seconds.

We give thumbs up to the real steak on our Steak Salad ($8) on the otherwise ordinary salad of chopped iceberg piled with large steak fries, shredded cheese, black olives, banana peppers, onions and artichokes (another nice touch!).

Chicken Italian Style ($10.50) was not what we had envisioned. Two chicken breasts were served on a plate with fried chunks of diced potatoes, onions, green pepper and mushrooms. Although not everything Italian has to be smothered in sauce, the only thing Italian about this dish was the seasoning sprinkled on top. As a side, we chose the wedding soup which was full of acini de pepe and tender meatballs in a mild chicken broth.

Crabmeat Devonshire ($10) was packed up for a colleague. It traveled well and was worthy of the wait. Large pieces of crab were smothered in a rich cheese sauce served with points of toast. Very tasty and satisfying, but watch out for the richness of this dish. For our side, we chose the Pasta Fagiole that included macaroni, cannelini beans, Italian seasoning, tomatoes and sauce.

For dessert we shared a slice of creamy Cheesecake ($4) that was topped with whipped cream and strawberries. Always a yum in our book.

Compiled by Rebecca Killian, Sis Reola and guests. Meals are paid for by the Valley News Dispatch and are unrelated to advertising.