Put it this way: you're not going to leave Pepitone's hungry. The menu is full of items to tempt your tummy, from salads and sandwiches to pasta, steak and desserts.

Try the turkey panini, a flavorsome pairing of slow-roasted meat and lemon-garlic mayo, accompanied by skinny, fresh fries, or one of the rustic pizzas ($8.50-$11.25), with toppings like shrimp and pesto or barbecue chicken and caramelized onions. Most entrees, like penne pasta with shrimp, garlic pepper sauce and tequila or stuffed porked cops, run between $10.50 and $18.50.

Desserts to sample include the pecan bread pudding, made from brioche and candied pecans and topped with a bourbon caramel sauce and chocolate ganache; banana caramel cheesecake; hot chocolate creme brulee, made with cocoa powder, vanilla and orange peel; and cannoli. In other words, everything on the menu.

Sexy wood tables and chairs fill the hardwood-floored space, which has a long, inviting dining room where sunlight streams in through a skylight obstructed slightly by wooden ceiling beams. James Brown music peps up the already pretty room, which has both exposed brick walls and cream-colored walls. A large bar area with TVs also sits at the front of the restaurant, and service is dedicated and friendly.

Centerstage Reviewer: Mary Susan Littlepage