Mario's has the sauce to satisfy your pizza craving

Down Dorchester Road in North Charleston, and close to the last outpost of Substation II (at least in the Charleston area), a newish Italian pizza/pasta restaurant called Mario's awaits.

Decked out in the Italian shades of green, white and red, and faux brick barriers, the restaurant doles out pizza by the slice or pie, sandwiches, pasta, chicken and veal. More ambitious than your typical strip-shop eatery, Mario's also serves up gnocchi, mussels and clams.

Here, though, portioning remains the principle. The baked ziti ($7.99) emerges like a tower of marinara and mozzarella, the pasta shells draped in enough red sauce to hide the entire plate. Throw in a couple of garlic knots, plus salad, and the lunch special runs only $7.99. Now quick, sneak off for a nap before your boss finds out.

The pizza unfortunately can't keep up. The crust is thin but too crunchy, unable to support the heft of a pie such as the Pizza Works, which contains pepperoni, sausage, onions, green peppers, mushrooms and black olives. Try to roll a slice and -- careful -- watch for grease spillage.

Lighter pies such as the Margarita (basil, mozzarella and garlic), White (ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan), or Eggplant (with ricotta and mozzarella) might fare better. Pricing, however, is good. A personal, 10-inch Pizza Works costs $7.99, and $18.99 for an 18-inch.

Mario's also offers mussels and clams in red or white sauce, and veal and chicken in three styles: parmesan, marsala and picata.

And give the restaurant this: Mario's already knows the value of its location, and prospective audience, offering a 10 percent discount to military personnel as well as Bosch and Boeing employees.