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The motif of the mezzaluna—"half-moon" in Italian, and also the name for the crescent-shaped kitchen blade—is trumpeted proudly in the décor: a ceiling mural of blue sky and clouds, walls hung with whimsical, painterly interpretations of the eponymous icon. Founder Aldo Bozzi—a onetime president of Alfa Romeo—and his team run a quintessential Florentine trattoria, with a menu packed with antipasti; twice-daily-prepared homemade pastas; and the pièces de résistance—twelve-inch, thin-crust, DOC-certified Neapolitan pizzas, cooked in a wood-burning oven by a staff pizzaiolo. The Quattro Stagioni includes meaty chunks of artichoke heart, fresh mushrooms, lightly grilled eggplant, and paper-thin, just-salty-enough prosciutto. The four-cheese white pizza shows restraint—you can actually taste the tangy bite of fresh mozzarella—and is surprisingly light for the dairy load. Pastas offer bits of the exotic, like mild monk's cheese and sundried mullet roe. But dining at Mezzaluna is not for the mellow: Pink marble tables are crammed cheek-by-jowl and the crowd is boisterous. If you're still not convinced, perhaps the prominently displayed framed note from actor Roberto Benigni will entice you in: "If I had not found Mezzaluna, I would not have survived." — Melissa Kirsch

Pizza quattro stagioni, $18; pizza quattro formaggi, $17.50