Dining: Dipalma Restaurant

Salvatore DiPalma has appeared on CBS.ÿBut while he waits to be discovered as the next Emeril, DiPalma has chosen quietly to produce exquisite Italian cuisine at his eponymously named restaurant.

DiPalma creates extravagantly decadent food, such as duck ravioli with foie gras sauce. The generous portions make for a gluttonous gourmet experience. DiPalma's is a luxurious restaurant that encourages one to relax into the pleasure of food.

In the downstairs bar, pictures of Marilyn Monroe seem strategically placed to remind patrons that dieting is not always the way to be sexy. Upstairs the restaurant is dominated by a large, vivid painting of a curvaceous Venus clutching bushels of apples.

While the Brunette, my companion for the evening, couldn't quite work out the significance of the painting, we did decide Venus looked as though she would've liked to join us in sharing the lavender crˆme brul‚e for desert.

Although the Brunette and I only had a table for two, we felt as though we had another friend with us, in the form of the ever-present Nicole. An uber-waitress, Nicole was quite happy to spend (a lot) of time describing and recommending dishes, even though she had a private party to attend to upstairs as well. Like an Italian mama, Nicole fussed over us, wanting us to take just one more bite, or to try another wine with the venison. Her hand gestures grew ever more animated as she described the chocolate cake, and I got worried that she might end up injuring herself in the fronds of steel and Murano glass of the contemporary chandeliers.

Her recommendations were spot-on though, as dish after dish earned sighs of appreciation from the Brunette. From marinated quail on peach chutney to homemade pastas, DiPalma's excellence as a master of Italian cuisine was assured. The only failure was a hazelnut crusted sea bass, my unfortunate choice, which was bland, although impressively succulent for a white fish.

Salvatore came and chatted with us, his good-looking presence beguiling the Brunette into revealing intimate details of her journeys across Italy. In return, Salvatore told us about his time as a game chef in New York, which led the Brunette to mutter that she "wouldn't mind testing his game skills." Whether his smile drove her to judge the venison with a blueberry demi as "melt-in-your-mouth tender" is questionable, but upon my tasting I was blown away by its succulence.

DiPalma's is not a cheap restaurant (entr‚es average about $30), but its prices are undoubtedly reflected in the quality and generosity of the dishes. The boisterous conversations and peals of laughter from other patrons indicated satisfaction, while we left happily delirious--not, surprisingly, from alcohol, but from the innate pleasure of being satiated with pampering service and fantastic food.

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