Best way to start a new year of food reviews? Pizza. It’s comforting, it’s well done ’round these parts, and it’s always fun to add a new entry to my Connecticut Pizza Chronicles.

True to Connecticut form, Plum Tomato’s shop in East Lyme opened where ANOTHER pizza shop used to be, thereby expanding to three the Plum Tomato mini empire in the region.

Now, be aware that Plum Tomato’s menu very likely and literally offers something for everyone. I was prepared to go big on pizza and pasta sampling, but one look at the menu slowed my roll. From quesadillas and nachos to colorfully curated sandwiches and desserts, Plum Tomato offers many, many items beyond the usual pizza-shop fare. We did our best to try and hit every section of the menu, but our refrigerator remains full of leftovers and it’s not very big. To be continued!

We’ll start with the main attraction. Two very different pizzas left us happy and satisfied, although one was particularly stellar, and that’s the Luigi White Pie ($22.25 for a small). Topped with plum tomatoes, bacon, chicken, mozzarella and ranch dressing, this pie delivered a tangy/savory experience that was fabulous. The chicken was sliced oh-so-thin so it toasted it nicely in the oven, and while ranch dressing on pizza might sound a bit elementary, try it first. It was judiciously applied and just the right amount to bring everything together.

My create-your-own red pizza topped with feta and pepperoni ($20.25; small) offered just about everything I’m looking for in such a mix: salty, savory notes tempered with very good tomato sauce and melty mozzarella cheese. I love feta cheese on pizza and it’s hard to find as a topping option on local menus — it was much appreciated and a very good variety of feta, to boot. Not too tart, not too salty.

As for the crust, it was a bit thicker than a thin-crust pie and got just the right treatment pre-oven. The pies emerged crisp but not dry and tinged with olive oil flavor.

From a list of sandwiches with fun titles (Sammy the Bull, anyone? How about Da Bomb?), we selected the Chicken Parm Delight (listed as the CPD Sandwich; $11.75 for a half, which is huge), just to hew a bit closer to the classics. We chose wisely, because the CPD topped the charts and is something we will order again and again. Customers get a choice of two house made breads as sandwich vehicle: Brickini, a flat bread; and fatti, your basic Italian bread, although “basic” here means soft, flaky, fresh and flavorful. What’s more, the lightly toasted bread slices didn’t fall apart, despite the very heavy load of breaded chicken cutlet topped with pesto-marinara sauce and Romano cheese. Every part of it was wonderful — from the breading on the chicken to the pesto notes throughout. Recommended.

We reserve the right to eat nachos at a pizza place in the future, but from the appetizer menu we chose more Italian-inspired fare: the house meatballs ($7.99 for three good-sized meatballs) and an order of Feta Bruschetta ($8.99). The meatballs come bathed in a bright, very good tomato sauce with a slight kick of pepper. We imagine they would be wonderful on that fatti bread! They went quite well with the bruschetta, which offers a thicker, more pizza-like crust than some renditions — all the better to support the plum tomatoes, feta, mozzarella and basil on top. We enjoyed it well enough, but anyone expecting a more typical bruschetta — thick toasted bread loaded with chopped tomatoes and garlic — should manage their expectations.

We had higher hopes for the Penne in Creamy Tomato entrée, a combo of penne tossed with tomato cream sauce and green peas and a choice of sausage or plant-based sausage ($15.75; comes with a very good side salad). To be fair, we’d just finished the CPD and remained in an afterglow of raised expectations. However, we tried this dish with plant-based sausage and the real deal, and it didn’t hit the mark for us either time. We expected a lot more flavor, kick, and nuance, but oddly the taste of the peas took over in both iterations and nearly erased what tomato sauce and sausage usually add to a dish. For what it’s worth, the portion is generous.

And, of course, when a menu presents a list of four double-decker quesadillas to choose from, you must try at least one. As an unapologetic contrarian, I selected the Cheeseburger-Dilla ($11.75), which is exactly what it sounds like: ground beef, lettuce, tomato, and onion in a flatter format. Ours was grilled well, offering a crispy crunch, and as a double-decker a sense of burger-ness came through. Is it unusual? Yes. Is it tasty? Oh, yes, and even better paired with the accompanying Thousand Island dressing.

Creativity, it seems, is in no short supply in our region’s pizza palaces. It’s a necessity in our market, and Plum Tomato rises to the occasion — this is location number three after all. The team at Plum Tomato clearly loves what they do, and that is perhaps the best of secret ingredients.

IF YOU GO

The Plum Tomato

10 Chesterfield Road, East Lyme

Phone: (860) 739-2054

theplumtomato.com (online ordering available)

Cuisine: Pizza, pasta, salads, and a colorful cast of sandwiches

Atmosphere: Very casual; clean and tidy but no frills. Several comfy-looking booths offer in-house seating. The entryway and register area see a lot of traffic from takeout customers.

Service: Pleasant and organized

Hours: Monday through Sunday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Prices: Not cheap. Specialty red and white pizzas on average start at $19; build-your-own pizzas start at $14.25 for a small, and toppings are priced at approximately $3 each; pasta dishes are between $15 and $16 and come with a side salad.

Credit cards: Accepted

Handicapped access: A dip in the sidewalk that leads to the door offers chair access; dedicated parking

Reservations: No