Profile

This Albanian-owned eatery, open since 1987, has a strong following of local (mostly older) diners who bypass the narrow pizza-by-the-slice entrance in favor of the windowless dining room in back for Italian-American standards served up on white tablecloths. The laundry list of large-portioned classics, however, doesn’t completely succeed: Bland bread-crumb-stuffed mushrooms are only salvaged by a shallow pool of apple-brightened tomato sauce, and overcooked, heat-lamp-baked spaghetti carbonara is a gooey mess topped with bacon (instead of the more appropriate pancetta or guanciale). The thick-crust pizza is decent—the Margherita is nicely topped with fresh tomatoes—but doesn’t impress. — David Farley