"Not many restaurants have a wait at 8 on a Wednesday night. Cafe L' Amore is one of them, and after a few visits it's easy to see why: The food and the prices are worth it.
Half the people in the dining room seem to know one another, and everyone seems to know and be known by the outgoing owner, Mounir Michael.
The restaurant fills two adjoining storefronts, one of which houses the main dining room. The other room is divided between a pizza counter (complete with a wood-burning oven and a pile of firewood) and a small dining area. The two rooms are connected by cherry French doors that impart a slight, nice formality.
Once seated, guests immediately receive a basket of oven-warmed bread. This sustains them through the reading of the menu and of the specials list, presented typewritten with descriptions and prices for nearly a dozen additional items.
Michael and his chef-cousin, who seldom leaves the kitchen, have devised a menu of light Italian fare; low in fat, rich in taste, and at the upper end of the value scale.
For appetizers, an extraordinary radicchio special deserves a place on the main menu. Wrapped in prosciutto and drizzled with a substantial, but not overpowering brown wine sauce, it opened the taste buds. Much simpler was the portobello al burgundy, a three-inch disc in a sweet and savory reduction of wine.
A plate heaped with baby squid -- fresh specimens coated with mild breading and sizzled in hot oil -- comprised the calamari al la toscana. The dipping sauce was spicy, but thin.
Pasta entrees, even the hard-to-get-right angel hair, were perfectly al dente. Namesake Capellini L' Amore, came bathed in a delicate pink sauce, enlivened by chunks of flavorful prosciutto. It was tasty and filling without being overwhelming. The special spinach ravioli were tossed in a sauce heavy with garlic, one of the chef's signature flavors.
Pollo L' Amore made a beautiful appearance on a plate with painted border. Thin, buttersoft slices of chicken tumbled over one another beneath artichokes and a lemony, garlicky sauce. Also fine: vitello margherita, flavored with that same combination of artichokes and lemon, this time with spinach stirred in. Shrimp scampi were fresh and tender on a bed of angel hair.
Pizzas at Cafe L' Amore are thin-crusted and bubbling hot. We tried the simple margherita and the fancier piccante, with two kinds of sausage, and found both good".