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Cortina is the kind of moderately priced, innocuous neighborhood restaurant New Yorkers enjoy coming home to. The Northern Italian food—with a slightly Americanized slant—isn't authentic, but it's good. The usual suspects appear on the menu: caprese; parmigiana and marsala; Bolognese, pesto, and primavera. Favoring simple preparations and presentations over pomp and circumstance, Cortina plates velvety cuts of sautéed meat and flaky grilled fish with roasted potatoes and lightly buttered vegetables. The kitchen uses a basic arsenal of Italian ingredients—olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, tomatoes, cream, wine, parmesan, proscuitto—to great effect. Straightforward sauces are like flavor shots. The balsamic reduction served next to the swordfish, for example, is a direct hit of a single taste sensation. Homemade pasta is a house specialty, and the tomato-basil puree served over the fresh spinach ravioli is another concentrated flavor experience. The very reasonably priced wine list, while brief, culls from a range of areas—France, Australia and California—in addition to the ubiquitous Italy. And the food and wine are complimented by a warm and comfortable culinary atmosphere: ripe-tomato-colored walls; a dark-wood bar with matching wainscoting, shelves and molding; and decorative bottles of flavored olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and pickled vegetables. — Andrew Sessa

Ravioli de pomodoro, $14.95; chicken parmagiana, $14.95; salmon al limone, $18.95