By Alison Kaiser
Posted: Tue 6:50 PM, Jul 25, 2017

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. (WDTV) - Mia Margherita in Bridgeport specializes in simple, fresh Italian dishes, made from recipes handed down through generations.

"It's part of my personal heritage and the areas heritage; it's a celebration of food," said Scott Duarte, owner of the pizzeria.

Their star attraction is the coal fired pizza, which is made in front of customers.

"That's the original way that pizza came to the United States, through coal-fired pizzerias. So we're paying homage to those roots," Duarte said.

The dough is made fresh daily and sits over night to rise. Then, the dough is pulled on a marble slab.

Originally from Peru, Chef Pamela DeLaude gained pizza-making experience when she worked in Italy for several years. The chef explained the process of making a perfectly round piece of dough.

"You want to first push the dough with your fingers — making sure to get out all the air bubbles —you want to make it even."

The dough is rotated repeatedly while being pushed to the outside edges. Then, the chef tosses the pizza in the air and rotates it in a circle with their fists. This gets the pizza to the right size and consistency without breaking the dough.

Mia Margherita offers tons of toppings for their decadent, light pizzas. They also serve a variety of classic italian dishes and sides.

"I love the [West Virginia] pizza with the sausage and fresh mozzarella, " said customer Janna Dubberke.

Mia also has a full bar that serves house-made 'limoncello' and sangria. Next door, they have a market that sells desserts, sandwiches and wine.

"I think they're very accommodating," said customer Nathan Rakestraw.

He continued, "Not only for the service they provide, but the food is excellent."