Palate-leasing pastas and salads at Canton’s Piada Italian Street Food

JACKSON TWP. Somehow Piada: Italian Street Food has flown under my radar since its opening in 2013 at 4469 Belden Village St. NW.

I knew of its existence for sure and  knew Piada was a Columbus-based chain. But I had only a vague idea of the menu and had never ventured inside.

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After my other restaurant-review plans abruptly fell through Sunday, I decided to give Piada a try. I went to MyPiada.com, studied the menu at length, and struggled a bit with placing an online order for two pastas and a salad.

My food was ready for pickup at the designated time, about 20 minutes later, and well packaged for travel. Curbside pickup is available. Piada has an appealing interior design, with subdued lighting (this was nighttime) above wooden tables, and a counter that offers fast-casual,  Chipotle-style service. (Next time I’ll order in person.)

I honestly didn’t know what to expect of the food, and — good news! — my friend and I were pleasantly surprised by all of it. Portions were large, ingredients were fresh and the total price, $29.24, seemed fair for a large meal for two. This didn’t feel like assembly-line fast food at all.

I ordered the Farmers Market salad in the large size for $8.59 (a regular is $6.99) and it was plenty for two to share. An array of crisp mixed greens and red cabbage were generously topped with sliced strawberries and avocado, candied pecans, sweet corn and feta cheese, and the lemon-basil salad dressing was light and pleasing.

This was one of the finest salads I’ve had in memory, its bright colors and flavors especially welcome in the midst of winter. A deluxe Caesar and classic Caesar also are available, and there is the option of enhancing salads with grilled chicken ($1.89), grilled steak ($1.99) or grilled salmon ($2.99).