Bella’s Pizza & Pasta, Cortlandt
Mohegan Lake resident Carlos Rivas has worked in the restaurant industry for a while but Bella’s Pizza & Pasta in Cortlandt is the first business he has ever owned.
Rivas and his wife, Karen, opened the eatery about four months ago. “That was my dream all the time. Now we’re here,” he said, adding he has experience preparing pizzas, which he continues to do so at his new establishment.
Rivas said his wife is responsible for the administrative duties at Bella’s.
Bella’s offers a wide variety of pizza, including chicken with onions and peppers and white wine; sausage with chicken potatoes and mushrooms, as well as traditional toppings, such as pepperoni, meatball, mushroom, spinach and eggplant. Personal size gluten-free pies are also available.
Rivas said some of the most popular pastas he offers include penne a la vodka, baked ziti, and spaghetti and meatballs.
Bella’s extensive menu also offers appetizers, soups, salads, wedges, wraps, sandwiches, side orders, rolls and calzones, seafood, chicken, veal and eggplant dinners and desserts. There are “a lot of choices” at Bella’s, Rivas said.
Rivas said his current location was formerly operated as a pizzeria. The location has many successful businesses and that helps draw customers to his new restaurant, Rivas said. He said most of his customers come from Cortlandt, Yorktown and Peekskill. Most of his customers order take-out, he noted.
Bella’s also has a catering service for with trays that can serve as many as 20. Rivas said some his favorite dishes at Bella’s include chicken cacciatore. Sole Francese, and salmon piccata.
Rivas said business has been good for his new establishment. “So far, we’re doing okay,” he said. Helping to establish a customer base has been his positive reputation as a pizza maker, Rivas said.
Bella’s Pizza & Pasta is located at 2093 E. Main St. (Route 6), across the street from Shop Rite, in Cortlandt For more information, call 914-402-7645. The restaurant also has a Facebook page. It is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
