By Diana (Foodology),
Special to The Post

Pazzo Chow serves up home-style Italian in a cosy little restaurant in Chinatown. One of the newest spots to open in the neighbourhood, Pazzo Chow offers a selection of Italian food for takeout or eating in, including espresso, homemade focaccia bread, salads, and snacks.
I visited the restaurant with two coworkers and found the space very small with just one table inside and two tables outside. Take note: it is not not a place for large groups.
The menu changes daily, so you never know what will be featured. While you wait, you can visit the grocery section, which includes a carefully selected range of local and Italian-made goods. The owners are passionate about food, and their curated selection of fine quality products have a rich history and are not easily found elsewhere in Vancouver. Many of the products are used in their menu too.
We started with Fresh Focaccia with Nutella ($2). They did not skimp on the Nutella, making this a rich snack perfect for sharing. We found that the salt on the focaccia balanced very well with the sweet Nutella.
I ordered a bowl of fresh pasta with focaccia ($8). There are a few sauces to choose from. The pasta was al dente and was a good size for lunch. The Spinach with BBQ Pork, walnuts and water chestnuts ($7.50) was one of the featured salads. It looked amazing, but I felt there was too much sauce for the salad, leaving the leaves at the bottom of the dish drenched in dressing.
For dessert, we tried the Salted Pistachio ($4.25/scoop) ice cream from local creamery, Brown Paper Packages Ice Cream. It was very smooth and the addition of the salted pistachio was delicious.
Pazzo Chow is a nice place to stop for a quick lunch if you work in this area.

Foodology is a top ranked food blogger on UrbanSpoon. These are the tales of her dine-out experiences.
Read more at www.foodology.ca.

WE RATE PAZZO CHOW: 3/5

PAZZO CHOW
620 QUEBEC STREET, VANCOUVER
WWW.PAZZOCHOW.COM