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Review content:
This excellent Italian BYOB-or-not evolved from an art cafe to a fully realized restaurant at some point over the years. We've been twice since we discovered it a couple months ago. The service was warm, friendly and attentive but low key. We felt welcome immediately, even though the room was full of regulars. The room itself was beautifully spare - a single handsome abstract painting decorated the walls, thus highlighting the architecture of the airy, high-ceilinged carefully-painted room. The menu was fairly small but carefully chosen, with several appetizers, salads, entrees, pastas, specials, and desserts to choose from. There were several wines by the glass and a good selection of fairly-priced wines by the bottle. You may also bring your own bottle if you choose, which is a really nice feature! Regarding the food, the squash ravioli were simple, delicate, rich, sublime. The steak in my flank steak salad was delicious, perfectly grilled, juicy, flavorful, while the arugala and tomatos were fresh and ripe, dressed in a tangy lemon vinaigrette. The same salad tops the Milanese cutlet, a pork chop pounded thin, breaded, and crisply fried. On our second visit, my husband reported that the cutlet was a little tough to his taste. My buccatini amatriciana was divine - the pasta perfectly al dente, the sauce simple in its rich onion, tomato and pancetta splendor. My husband had the osso bucco on his first visit, which impressed him mightily with its tenderness and its rich savoriness. Of the desserts we tasted, the tiramisu was an excellent, straight-ahead version. The ricotta cheesecake was, like so much of the food on the menu, perfectly simple, rich, pure in flavor, astoundingly light. I must also mention the great bread, from Faragalli's - dense, earthy, slightly sweet. And the chocolatecello that Ernesto sometimes dispenses at the end of the meal - alcoholic chocolate heaven.
Pros: lovely welcoming service, beautiful airy room, terrific food
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