NVM Review

By Warren Rojas

Food: 7.2 Ambiance: 7.2 Service: 6.7

“Serious” is not a term I would use to describe any aspect of the Sette Bello experience.

Well, maybe seriously delicious.

This place is no culinary temple; it’s more like a gastronomic fun park.

Prismatic colors grab your gaze at every turn (stained glass entryway, yellow checkered tables).

The serpentine-like bar weaves throughout making way for plenty of room for all types to intermingle, including cigar-chomping gentlemen (enjoy the smokey indulgence while you can), Peroni-swigging co-workers or Italian “tapas”- and gourmet pizza-sharing youths well versed in the pleasures of quivering crudo, toasted bruschetta and pungent formaggio.

A snack-sized portion of polpette reveals a cluster of mini meatballs rolled in breadcrumbs, a spicy tomato sauce at their feet.

Coils of shaved fennel and leafy tufts of arugula partner up for a bitter-fresh promenade across the palate, while a sheet of shaved Parmesan ensures salt receptors don’t feel left out.

Freshly torn basil, pearls of smoked mozzarella (a little goes a long way), diced tomatoes and a confident tomato ragout drive a bowl of herb-laced fettuccine.

By Warren Rojas

Food: 7.4 Ambiance: 7.1 Service: 6.4

“This is actually my favorite table. You can see everything from here,” the manager shares as she slides us into one of the corner perches at the social hub that is Sette Bello—a hipster magnet powered by local dining impresario Franco Nuschese (the mastermind behind D.C.’s Café Milano and Sette Osteria).

Floor-to-ceiling windows ensure that those who come to be seen are—leaving passersby to gaze in longingly at the feasting and frivolity taking place within. Sunken sofas opposite the bar are ideal thrones for oversized personalities come to play.

Elsewhere, curvy booths hugging a far wall in the main dining room provide a hint of privacy for more bashful guests.

Bruschetta can be crowned with everything from fresh ricotta (creamtacular) to an exhilarating prosciutto-fig jam duet (cured ham and spicy preserves absolutely sing). Grilled octopus (their tiny bodies infused with smoke) and tender coils of scorched calamari turn seafood salad into a star attraction. Cream-soaked shells play host to savory ground pork (awash in caraway and pepper) and meaty sauteed mushrooms.

By Warren Rojas

For a dinner so sweet, dessert becomes unnecessary, sample the mezzelune-a bowlful of bulbous, half-moon ravioli filled with creamy pumpkin and amaretti (almond-paste cookies), all swimming in a perfumed cream sauce punctuated by minty-fresh sage.