As well as great bruschetta, the wood-fired pizzas and breads and delicate fresh pastas, and desserts are worth leaving space for.

Alone, it was a light meal, the delicate pasta a pleasant counterpart to the savory filling of fresh pork sausage and spinach and toppings of sautéed onions and Swiss cheese.

Instead of Robiola's delicate pastas, you are served rigatoni or linguine cooked to mush and drowning in oily sauce.

They dined on stuffed artichokes, veal Matoon, a specialty of the house, and angel hair, a delicate pasta.

"We loved the sauce, but it cried out for a more delicate pasta."

A heaping portion of capellini con spinach and meatballs with oil, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes was a mild delicate pasta with six generous nicely seasoned meatballs.

For this sauce you do not want a delicate pasta; any whole-wheat variety works well.

Expect wonderful fried things, delicate pastas and ingredients such as pecorino di fossa (sheeps' cheese aged in caves), goose, swordfish, sultanas, mushrooms and truffles.

Top of the line was ravioli in cream - large, delicate, cheese-filled pasta, surrounded by a peppercorn saffron sauce with a bouquet of lightly dressed greens in the center of the plate.

The delicate pasta triangles glisten beneath a velvety sauce made of crushed squab liver livened with capers and anchovies.