This was a truly tasty breakfast pizza you brunch balkers missed out on. I heartily recommend a special request. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

Not long ago, prompted by my not-infrequent breakfast cravings for pizza, I happened upon what I was sure would become a new favorite when I popped into 1803 Pizza Kitchen for their Sunday brunch.

This is where my dining companion and I discovered The Morning Pizza ($15), a crisp-crusted beauty laden with garlic cream, mozzarella and provolone cheeses, bacon, beautifully runny fried eggs and the bright visual of green onions that do double duty once you stuff this colorful, creamy slice into your face.

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In fact, I couldn’t wait to talk to Angelica Luzardo, who along with husband, Nestor, owns the cute little pizzeria that’s been slinging pies in Orlando’s Audubon Park Garden District since March of 2018. I did so through the twin teammates of Zoom (as Luzardo was home in her native Maracaibo, Venezuela) and family friend, server and interpreter, Kelli Rodriguez (as Luzardo communicates best in her native tongue).

Laughter, of course, is a universal language — and we both did plenty of it when I told her how much we loved the Morning Pizza ... and she told me they no longer serve brunch.

The Morning Pizza, ready for its close-up. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

“This was our second attempt at brunch, but it was a total failure!” Luzardo informed me as the three of us had a good chuckle. “We did a whole new menu. I loved everything on it. We even made the brioche in-house. But people just came to the brunch and asked for pepperoni pizzas.”

For some reason, they told me, this seems to be all anyone wants at noon on a Sunday.

Nothing against pepperoni, but man, those people are missing out.

The good news, though, is that customer satisfaction is the foundation of 1803′s success, per Luzardo.

“You can still get the pizza if you want it,” Rodriguez tells me. “We always have everything to make it.”

Not surprising once you get a peek at their expansive menu, something that Luzardo and her team have tried to pare down more than once, “but everything on it really sells,” she tells me.

The proscuitto arugula pie, where bright, bitter green compliments flavors fatty, salty and sweet. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

The prosciutto and arugula pie ($18) is another good’n — salty, fatty, bitter and a little sweet from that balsamic reduction, served up on the crust Luzardo describes as a New York/California hybrid. It’s pro-style patois she didn’t have just a couple of years ago. Nor did Nestor. Neither had an ounce of restaurant experience before jumping in with both feet.

“We came here like many other Venezuelans, seeking a better future, better opportunities,” Luzardo says. “We wanted to create a business — so we found a chef and we were willing to make what he wanted to make ... and basically invest in him as a person.”

The menu — salads, pasta, pizzas — was his dream, but after a time, he wanted to move on. Luzardo used his three weeks’ notice to get a massive crash course in culinary.

“I am a very visual learner; I took video of everything he did and watched it over and over again and practiced.”

And when COVID-19 struck on the heels of the chef’s departure, Luzardo’s business didn’t suffer the same way others did. It thrived.

“We already had a good system for delivery where other restaurants were struggling to catch up,” she notes. “Before COVID, I took way too long to make a pizza, but during this slower time I was able to practice, perfect and become much more efficient. Now I can make the dough, the pizza, the desserts, everything.”

An avid cook who’d largely set it aside due to the demands of running a business, Luzardo’s new role reawakened her passion. And those desserts have proven so successful, that they’ve become a business within the business.

A generous heap of fresh-fried zeppole. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

There aren’t too many places with zeppole on the menu, so this San Gennaro veteran had to test the waters. And though I wouldn’t mind at all if they threw them in a paper bag for nostalgia’s sake, they were actually better than the last one I grabbed at the corner of Spring and Mulberry Streets.

1803′s generous serving of petite, fresh and beautifully sugared dough balls ($6) looks mighty lovely piled high on a plate.

Zeppole are the sort of thing you eat straight out of the fryer, but items like the dulce de leche-topped brownie bombon ($7), tres leches ($8) or triple Oreo cheesecake ($9) are crowd-pleasers many choose to take home.

The proscuitto arugula pie, where bright, bitter green compliments flavors fatty, salty and sweet. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

“We’re starting to introduce more and getting very inclusive because there are people who can’t eat gluten or sugar or want plant-based options, so we’ve added vegan cheesecakes and sugar-free brownies.”

All desserts can be ordered ahead in 9-inch, full-sized versions, as well, and serve 9-15 people depending on how its sliced.

Bright and cheery outside (note the Insta-friendly pizza wings for posing). (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

Luzardo runs specials every couple of weeks, too. Sometimes they stick, which was the case with the Ferrero Rocher mousse ($9).

“The customers missed it so much, we put it on the menu.”

The Luzardos serve a mostly American clientele, 80 percent, Luzardo estimates, “but only a year ago I’d say it was more like 90. Now, we have more customers who are Venezuelans.”

Cute and clean inside. (Amy Drew Thompson / Orlando Sentinel)

It’s partially through friends and word-of-mouth, says Rodriguez, “but also a lot of the drivers for [third-party delivery services] are Venezuelan. They come in, they hear us speaking, they catch the accent and then they tell other people. One day I’ll see a driver come in to pick up food and then I’ll see him come in for dinner. It happens a lot.”

I might direct them to the Sunshine offering on the menu ($18). An homage to the Luzardos’ home city, it’s a tomato sauce-based pie with mozzarella, ricotta, ham, bacon, fresh parsley and bright yellow sweet corn for Maracaibo’s bright, hot sun.

It’s cheery, too. Much like the 1803 crew, who will happily serve you pepperoni if that’s your passion, though I might urge you toward a smidge of adventure on a menu this broad and colorful.

Want to reach out? Find me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com. For more fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group or follow @fun.things.orlando on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.