OK, we'll stipulate right up front: Vinny's Italian Grill & Pizzeria is an Italian restaurant in the same way that Olive Garden is an Italian restaurant: not particularly Italian.

You want authentic Italian food, go to Mamma Zu's and get in line. But for an affordable, reliable -- and somewhat generic -- meal, you won't go wrong at the Vinny's near you.

Because we're talking about affordable lunches here, we'll start with the Italian Sausage Sub. At $5.95, it's a genuine bargain, even if the sausage borders on Brit-sausage bland. We whack it with a heavy dose of pepper flakes atop the tasty gooey cheese.

We like the Baked Spaghetti ($8.95), but our favorite noodle dish is the House Pasta ($7.75) with Spicy Marinara Sauce. It's exactly as advertised, with the spiciness building as you eat it. It's always good, and the portion is generous.

Let us take a moment to say that somebody's mama raised the wait staff properly. They're invariably polite and attentive. On the odd occasion when we've had to wait for a waiter, they've been apologetic about the delay.

Despite being a chain restaurant, the Vinny's we frequent on Forest Hill Avenue has a nice neighborhood mom-and-pop feel to it. How'd they do that?

We always get the House Salad ($3.95) with our meal because that's what we do. It's fresh, if uninspired. And while it seems to be about a buck overpriced, it drops to a reasonable $1.95 if you order it with one of the Vinny's Specialties, including the aforementioned House Pasta.

We refuse to try the Italian Wings ($6.50), because there's no such thing, in the same way as there's no such thing as chicken pizza, which is not on the Vinny's menu, thank you very much.

In addition to sandwiches, pasta dishes and pizzas, Vinny's makes three types of calzone and three types of stromboli. All are good, even if we can never remember which is which (calzoni, anyone?).

Good prices, good food, and good vibes from the staff. That's all you can ask for from any Italian restaurant, even if it isn't particularly Italian.

Mama mia, y'all!
Contact Lee Barnes at (804) 775-8129 or Lbarnes@timesdispatch.com.