What happens when a coffeeshop atmosphere is mixed with great Italian food?
Zolia Bistro.
Located inside II City Plaza on Convention Street, Zolia is an Italian bistro and enoteca — Italian for wine repository — serving many types of sandwiches, wraps and paninis. It is owned by Louis DeAngelo, who created the restaurants bearing his name around the state.
The restaurant’s design was “inspired by the fresh food and energetic experiences enjoyed in the most popular family-owned eateries throughout Italy’s larger cities and smaller towns,” according to Zolia’s website.
I decided to visit Zolia on the coldest day Baton Rouge had seen in two weeks. Shivering, I quickly walked from my car to the restaurant to explore the offerings.
FOOD
The lunch menu consists of paninis, wraps, sandwiches and salads. Strangely, the most expensive item on the menu was the filet mignon wedge salad at $17. The cheapest meals were a cup of soup at $4 or a selection of small salads at $5.
I opted for “The Big Cheese” panini at $7 with a mixed fruit cup side. Sharp cheddar, smoked gouda and fresh mozzarella with bacon and a tomato basil puree were pressed between two warm pieces of bread.
It was quite delicious. Being a cheese aficionado myself, I found all three cheeses to blend together perfectly with the bacon to make a delicious panini. However, the tomato basil puree caught me a little off guard. It almost seemed out of place texture-wise, but was an interesting addition nonetheless.
It was like a fancy grilled cheese — simple and delicious.
The fruit cup was a perfect complement to the smoky taste of cheese and bacon. All the fruit was ice-cold and tasted very fresh.
ATMOSPHERE
Think of a busy coffee shop. While I wouldn’t recommend Zolia as a study area, the restaurant seemed like a great place to grab lunch with a few friends. The lighting was nice, and the music was a great mixture of relaxing and upbeat tunes.
Seating was sit-down restaurant style, with silverware wrapped in cloth napkins waiting at the table, but I could also see couches and more casual seating elsewhere in the restaurant. The two styles clashed a little, but having both options was nice.
LOCATION
II City Plaza is one of the most gorgeous buildings in downtown Baton Rouge. Massive and modern, it suits the small bistro nicely.
That being said, the initial search for Zolia was confusing. I wasn’t familiar with what II City Plaza was, and I wandered aimlessly around the building before it hit me that the restaurant may be inside the enormous office building.
Zolia is a nice-looking bistro. The cash registers and kitchen are on the left side, and all the seating is on the right, with a wine bar located at the back. Frosted glass windows adorn the front of the restaurant with a clean-looking Zolia logo in the center. There appeared to be outdoor seating, but on a cold, windy day, all the customers were indoors.
EXPERIENCE
Even in the middle of a lunch rush, I received my food around 10 minutes after sitting down. It was hot and steaming. All waiting staff was friendly and eager to serve, so no qualms there.
My panini was $7 and a lemonade was $1.99, making the lunch splendid and reasonably priced.
Overall, Zolia provided a fun atmosphere with high-quality food without the high-quality price. The restaurant style begged for a group lunch with some close friends, and the helpful staff made a return visit from me very likely.
 
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Contact Taylor Balkom at [email protected]