At age 20, Carlo Lomeli had one...

At age 20, Carlo Lomeli had one goal: to own a restaurant within five years. Toward that end, Lomeli gave up something most 20-year-olds live for--his night life. He concentrated on stashing away his earnings from his job as manager of Sala’s Italian Restaurant in Lawndale, where he had started as a dishwasher. Then, in 1978, opportunity struck when Big Joe’s, a fixture in Gardena for two decades, went up for sale. At age 24, a year ahead of schedule, he was the owner of a restaurant, called, appropriately, Lomeli’s.

The popular restaurant is a small, cozy place with Chianti bottles hanging from a trellis and still-life paintings on the walls. In 1988, Lomeli opened his second restaurant, this one in Hermosa Beach.

The most popular item on the menu at Lomeli’s is pizza. No sun-dried tomatoes or goat cheese here. This is an old-fashioned pizza with familiar toppings: sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms. It may not compare to, say, Pizzeria Uno in Chicago, but this is a good pizza.

You might also consider the scampi ($10.95). Among the combination dinners is a filling plate of lasagna, ravioli, spaghetti and sausage ($8.95). As with all dinners, this comes with soup or salad, garlic bread, a glass of wine or soda and ice cream.

Lomeli’s is at 2223 W. Redondo Beach Blvd., Gardena. (310) 323-7993. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. Also at 500 Pacific Coast Highway, Hermosa Beach. (310) 374-3024. 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.