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| - Looking for some good Italian downtown on a Saturday night on the spur of the moment, we found this restaurant rated as #3 in the city by TripAdvisor, based on thousands of reviews. Despite it's' small size (seating for approximately 30-40 I would guess), we got a reservation for four at 8:30pm after calling at 7pm - not sure if this is indicative of demand, as the first two higher rated couldn't fit us. Anyway... the people were pleasant. When we arrived, although our booth was a bit tight, it is a cozy space with a somewhat rustic, minimalist feel. I will say that the night was one of the first hot evenings of the season, and it was quite warm in the restaurant, so it seemed like this might be a really good spot for those cold, winter evenings, but less suitable for the warmer weather. Moving on... the service was very friendly, but there was one hitch: our waitress had a strong Italian lilt, but seemed to have a bit of trouble with English. No worries, as that could add to the ambiance, but she often seemed confused. After we had been sitting, quite warm for approximately 15 minutes, the other server, who one would guess is the experienced and senior member of the staff, came to our table and asked if her colleague had told us about the specials (yes) and offered us water (we had requested it 15 minutes earlier) - whether accurate or not, our impression was that she was "checking up" on her. Anyway... we did eventually get our water, but only four small glasses, instead of just leaving us with a water carafe as they did later. The appetizers that we had ordered earlier with the water came probably 30 minutes after we ordered them, which seemed a long time for bruschetta and some stuffed risotto balls. In the intervening period, we had ordered our mains. Anyway, the appetizers were good quality - not fantastic, but solid, good food. Now... before I outline our main issue, I should provide one caveat: on the menu, there is a note that food can take time because it is all hand-made from scratch. Having said that... our mains did not come until more than an hour after we had sat down, and we did not order a long list of apps - just a couple of things to share. By this point, we were hot and famished. Despite the menu warning, it is a little bit surprising to find that a restaurant can not handle dinner for four in a quicker fashion, when there are approximately 10-20 people in the restaurant who seem to be not already in mid-meal. The mains were again very good, solid quality - portions not overly generous, but not skimpy either. My wife actually ate her entire portion (seafood pasta) which is a rarity, and a good sign. By the time we had finished our mains, rather quickly I admit since we were famished, we were still hot and simply did not want to chance another lengthy period for dessert or aperatifs. it was the right decision because after I asked for the cheque, it took another 15 minutes for that to be executed. I should add one final note: none of us ordered the pizza, but three of them passed while we were waiting for our food, and while I should warn you that our hungry state would have made kraft dinner appear as a delicacy, the pies looked really yummy, and I am tempted to go back at some point just to try one. Perhaps I'll look into whether they do take out and order in advance to avoid the wait. So... in summary: nice atmosphere for cooler weather, good quality food, and very good looking pizzas. Worth a try, but unfortunately can't be highly recommended at this point.
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