For those of you who haven’t been keeping up with my reviews, in my previous post I visited the Italian a-la-carte eatery in Redifer, Piatto Felice. Within the review, I asked for suggestions where I could get some good Italian food nearby, and although no one had a suggestion within the comments (which made me sad), I was lucky enough to travel to an actual Italian restaurant in State College. That place is none other than Home D Pizzeria.

Located about 2 miles up S. Atherton Street, Home D Pizzeria appears to be just your average restaurant at State College. Looking at the menu, Home D makes no effort to stray away from the stereotypical State College options. You’ve got your classics: pizza, burgers, the usual hoagies (which sadly they refer to as only subs or grinders, ew), cheesesteaks (which usually can’t be trusted as you know from my City Grill review), basic sandwiches, but their saving grace was the array of pastas.

As I mentioned in my last post, pasta used to be a staple of my diet until I moved to PSU. Now that I’m here, I barely eat it, and when I do it’s rarely good. So, my first time through Home D, I had to order myself some pasta. After way too much thought, I ordered the Bolognese Feffuccine. Only minutes later, I was informed that they had run out! Although I was unable to get my first option, to me this was a sign that the dish is very popular, which made me optimistic about their other pasta options. I resorted to my second choice, Tortellini Al Vodka, a cheesey pasta made with Home D’s in-house sauce.

When my dish first came out, I was amazed. The portions were absolutely monstrous. A bowl with a radius the likes of which I have never seen was set right in front of me, and having been deprived of good pasta for literally months, my mouth was watering. I was ready to stuff my face full with some good pasta…

I eyed my pasta dish, eager to dig in. I added some Parmesan cheese (what pasta dish is better without Parmesan??) and dug in. Wow. The pasta was tender and warm. Unlike Redifer, there was no play-dough texture to this masterpiece of a meal. The sauce was rich and the cheese was incredible! I ate and ate and ate, but it looked like I hardly made a dent. After giving myself a monstrous food baby, I had to stop. But it could have been much worse. Luckily I had a meal for tomorrow! And pasta is always better leftover anyway.

Overall, I would highly recommend trying out Home D Pizzeria, even if you aren’t going for pasta. The restaurant has a great feel, quite unlike many of the places downtown in my opinion. It’s a great spot to go with or without your family because the prices aren’t too steep, and you get portions that are well worth the price. The only setback is its location. Assuming that mostly everyone reading this does not have access to a car, paying for an Uber there and back might hike up the overall price of your dinner by a few bucks. With this in mind, I still think that it’s worth the trip!

Hope that this review helped, and, more importantly, I hope you go try this place out!