L'Artusi - L’ARTE DI MANGIARE BENE is right!

I'm sitting on the couch after an evening at L'Artusi with my team at work, and for once in my life, I can say that I feel just perfectly full after a four course (with a mix of dishes each round) Italian meal. That fact alone makes L'Artusi a unique and worthy find - its variety of light fishes, meat-centric mains, and hearty pastas appeals to not only those hankering for a heavy traditional Italian meal, but also to those craving something light and simple. Plus, the menu and food quality are not the only things going for this place - unlike its sister restaurant, Dell'Anima, L'Artusi has an ample, airy space with a beautiful bar and open kitchen on the first floor, as well as an upstairs to seat at least 20 small tables. With its brighter lighting and chic, yet cozy feel, the setting stays true to its classy West Village home, and is a great spot for any function - a fun date, group dinner or a meal solo at the bar. Despite the steady influx of clientele, the service is consistently attentive and personal - our server proved to be very eager to ask our questions, and if she wasn't readily available, another was right behind her to help. Great, well-rounded find that I'd 100% recommend.

Let's cut to the chase and talk about what REALLY matters - the food. I have to say the first time I visited L'Artusi, I was powering through week one of a 21-day cleanse, and therefore restricted myself from tasting virtually anything on the table. Talk about torture. However, there's always a silver lining - visiting with no restrictions tonight felt like Christmas morning. I came with the intention of trying everything, and fortunately, my colleagues were willing to share!

We followed our waitress's advice and ordered a few sharable appetizers to start, two pastas for what they call a "mid-meal," and then individual main courses. The standout appetizer: Roasted Mushrooms with fried egg, pancetta, and ricotta salata. The broken egg yolk was the perfect mild, creamy compliment to the bed of well-seasoned savory mushroom bits and crisp fried pork. Incredibly unique yet addictive flavor combo. Sinful!

But that's not to say that the other dishes paled in comparison. Served as a stack of cool, crunchy leaves dressed lightly with mild gorgonzola and roughly chopped hazelnuts, the Butter Lettuce Salad was another example of simple flavors combined to create a masterpiece.

For those in the mood for something even more light, the Citrus-Fennel Salad is a must, and for the 1 in 100 beet fans, the beet salad served on a bed of greens with a creamy, mild goat cheese base is also a winner. After the appetizer course there was no doubt in my mind that the meal would end well.

The pastas were probably my favorite part of the night. The tagliatelle "bolognese bianco", with thick, wide, al dente green pasta and a surprisingly light, tomato-less meat sauce was incredible. I'm not typically a bolognese fan, but this dish successfully showcased each key ingredient, unlike the usual three or four noodles swimming in an overpowering and oily, sloppy-joe like sauce. The Garganelli with mushroom ragu was yes, you guessed it, also delicious. The pasta was just perfectly cooked with that subtle density I look for and coated with a hearty, well-balanced finely-chopped mushroom sauce. The portions were a perfect size to share for 2 or three people as an appetizer - two for six mid-meal was plenty.

For my main, I had the Pan Seared Branzino with olives, lemon, and honey. The honey was hardly noticeable but added a subtle sweetness that balanced out the saltiness of the olives. I could have devoured pounds of the perfectly-crispy fish skin, and the meat itself was light and delicate. The ONE flaw I would point out in the dish was the olive mixture laying beneath the fish. A pile of 12-15 olives with sauteed lemon rhind is too strong an accompaniment to such a delicate fish, but it definitely didn't ruin the fish itself.

I was also able to taste the roast chicken which was SO tender and crispy. However, don't expect your typical Italian roast - L'Artusi's chicken is a deboned and flattened dark meat piece with a very flavorful skin. Different yet delicious.

The crispy roasted brussel sprouts and thick and creamy polenta with pecorino were great Contorni choices.

No meal is complete without dessert, and on a special occasion, why not order four! I loved the chocolate budino (we ordered two) which I'm used to calling "pot de cremes" - the chocolate flavor was bittersweet and rich; the texture utterly smooth. The other two desserts - the pineapple coconut sundae and the chocolate semifreddo were also tasty, but nothing I would remember months down the road. Then again, its tough for a dessert to strike my interest without a big scoop of ice cream on the side.

Chocolate sauce is poured atop the semi-freddo tableside

L'Artusi gets an A plus in my book for its well balance of all things important in a good restaurant: ambiance, service, menu selection, and food. Definitely plan to go back soon when my friends come to town.

Website: Lartusi.com

Address: 228 West 10th Street between Bleecker and Hudson