Il Fiora

Boasting the most eye-catching view at Buena Park’s dining and shopping destination The Source, the third floor Italian restaurant Il Fiora wows with its modern outdoor terrace, which can be seen from outside as a large open-sided box suspended above other floors. Once you’re inside, you’ll be impressed again by its consistently spectacular pizzas, pastas, and drinks.

Although we wouldn’t have expected to find some of Orange County’s best Italian-style pizzas at this largely Korean shopping center, each of the pizzas we’ve tried at Il Fiora is a perfect representation of the Neapolitan genre: the crust is almost elastic with each bite, lightly crispy but also soft, serving as a perfect canvas for cheese, sauce, veggies, and proteins.

The small menu leaves little room for experimentation. You can choose from 10 pasta dishes, six pizzas, five appetizers, and two risottos. We’ve fallen in love with the Spicy & Honey – a jalapeno and honey-laden pepperoni pizza – and the four-mushroom/truffle oil Funghi, while also repeatedly enjoying their basic but classic Margherita. Another pizza, Gorgonzola, mixes a bit of honey with multiple cheeses including its namesake, regular mozzarella, and Buffalo mozzarella; it’s a nice option when we’re not looking for “the usual” here.