As some of you may know, I am on a "finding the best pizzeria" mission for a few months now. A couple of months ago, I made my way to Starlite. As I mentioned on the previous article, the place is an institution with lots of loyal customers supporting their favorite local pizzeria. I happen to ruffle a few feathers after giving the place a not-so-very-glorious review.

A few weeks later, I received an e-mail from James Spango, son of owner Patty Spango. He expressed his disappointment after reading the review and explained how the shrimp and arugula pizza was the wrong choice and invited me back for another try. I responded by saying I would be happy to return and eat whatever they offer. Contrary to what some might think, I am not happy to give a restaurant a not-so-stellar review. I would love to eat great food every time I review, but I realize everyone has off days in a restaurant and I think I happened to visit Starlite on a very off one.

I went back with my daughter to re-taste the pizza. We walked in and were greeted by a hostess. I asked for James and she introduced herself as Patty Spango, the owner.

She sat me down and we chatted about what may have gone wrong the last time. She explained how she was extremely upset about the review, especially because she doesn't get too many of them. She prides herself for being on top of everything, including the fresh ingredients used in all the dishes. She informed me how the dough is made daily; the pizza sauce is made from scratch; and the sausage is cooked to perfection, as well as the meatballs.

As my daughter ordered a plate of spaghetti, Patty told me the shrimp and arugula pizza is on the menu since it is quite popular; but, according to her, it is not their best. I still think they should change and improve the recipe for it — I wouldn't want anything on my menu that is not made to perfection.

I told Patty I understood how stressful it could be to please customers eating at s restaurant. I also understand all eateries can have an off day — I have them in my kitchen all the time and if I was cooking for tons of people, I am sure I would have quite a few.

My daughter enjoyed her dish as I waited for my pizza. Both the marinara sauce and the meatball were good. I was given a chopped salad with homemade dressing, including dried oregano and red wine vinegar. The salad was delicious and the dressing definitely was the star.

The pizza came and I noticed it was a combination of four different kinds. There were two slices each of sausage, pepperoni, onion and plain. Everything smelled wonderful. This pizza reminded me of the ones we had in Star Tavern. I enjoyed the crunchy crust and thought the sauce was good — very different from my first visit. My favorite was the onion slice. Yellow onions are sliced and cooked with the pizza in the oven turning them sweet and tender.

Second-visit rating: OOO (three oranges)