Fontana Brings Generous Italian Comfort Food to Moore

A basket of warm rolls, a dish of seasoned olive oil, and a big plate of pasta is a fine way to settle into dinner at Fontana. This family-owned Moore restaurant keeps the mood comfortable and unfussy, with a small-scale dining room and the easygoing pace of a neighborhood Italian supper spot.

The look is old-fashioned in a pleasant way rather than overly formal. Booths, background music, and a room quiet enough for conversation give dinner a relaxed Italian character. You can arrive in everyday clothes after errands or make a little more of an occasion of it for a date night.

Fontana’s appeal is not built around a single signature plate. It is a broad, comforting menu of pasta, baked dishes, chicken, seafood, appetizers, and dessert—food meant for people who would rather have a satisfying dinner than a fussy one.

Classic pasta dishes do much of the work here. Cannelloni, lasagna, manicotti, ravioli, tortellini, fettuccine Alfredo, and spaghetti give a table plenty of familiar choices before anyone even starts comparing sauces.

The pasta sampler is especially useful when narrowing things down seems like unnecessary hardship. It has included cannelloni, lasagna, manicotti, and beef ravioli, putting several baked-and-sauced standards onto one plate.

Spaghetti comes with meat sauce and meatballs, a straightforward order that lets the tomato-rich sauce take center stage. The cheese manicotti is another good old-school choice, generously filled and served with a little more visual flourish than a simple casserole dish.

Sauces are a major reason to linger over the menu. Marinara, Alfredo, pink sauce, and vodka sauce all have their followers, so a party with divided loyalties can order across the spectrum—tomato-forward on one side of the table, creamy and rich on the other.

Chicken dishes give Fontana’s menu another whole lane to explore. Chicken Parmesan is a natural choice for marinara fans, while chicken alla vodka, Chicken Margarita, Chicken Alfredo, Chicken Primavera, Chicken Jerusalem, Chicken Marsala, and chicken piccata make the section feel considerably broader than a one-dish backup plan.

The grilled salmon is available for a substantial dinner that moves away from red sauce and pasta, while stuffed mushrooms can make a satisfying start. Fried calamari, mozzarella sticks, sausage, and calzones add the familiar Italian-American comforts that tend to be useful when a group has different appetites.

Lobster ravioli is one of the menu’s more indulgent pasta possibilities. It is the sort of order that makes sense when the table has already started with garlic cheese bread and nobody is pretending the meal needs to be restrained.

At Fontana, the meal has some built-in extras. Most entrees arrive with salad and bread, which helps explain why the plates are commonly filling without requiring an elaborate parade of add-ons.

The house salad dressing has become a favorite detail in its own right. It is a small thing, but a good house dressing can keep the obligatory pre-entree salad from feeling like a formality.

Bread service often comes with seasoned olive oil for dipping, a welcome opening ritual while everyone reaches a decision. Garlic bread and garlic cheese bread are also recurring choices for the table, particularly if marinara or Alfredo is on the way.

Dessert stays in the same familiar comfort-food register. Strawberry cheesecake offers a creamy finish with a little fruit, while tiramisu and cannoli keep the final course firmly in Italian restaurant territory.

After a pasta sampler or a hearty chicken entrée, dessert may be more of a shared-table proposition. That is not a bad arrangement: a few bites of tiramisu can be plenty after bread, salad, and a full dinner.

The indoor dining room has a modest footprint, with about a dozen tables noted at one point, plus booth seating. That scale helps the place suit a quiet lunch or early dinner just as easily as a family meal, birthday table, or low-key celebration.

Two televisions have been kept on without sound, leaving the background music and table conversation to do the actual work of the room. It is a practical little touch for diners who like some motion in the background without turning dinner into a sports-bar outing.

Service is friendly and attentive, with the family-run character showing in the personal check-ins as well as the general pace of the meal. Fontana works comfortably for a dinner for two, but it also has enough menu range to keep larger family groups from settling for the same thing.

Fontana has free parking in a lot described as roomy, removing one of the less glamorous complications of going out to dinner. Reservations generally have not been necessary, though the compact dining room gives the restaurant a more intimate feel than a large chain-style dining space.

Dine-in and takeout are available, and third-party delivery has also been offered. For a sit-down meal, many diners have found the pricing approachable, commonly landing around $10 to $20 per person depending on the order.

A simple wine list, with a small selection of reds and whites, is available for diners who want a glass with dinner. Otherwise, the main decision is pleasantly uncomplicated: red sauce, cream sauce, or perhaps both.