Carmellos Italian Restaurant and Bar

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Hidden Restaurant Deserves More Attention by George Pandi AT NIGHT, the western reaches of Sparks Street turn into a dark wasteland visited only by winds sweeping in from the river. Even by day this federal back alley doesn't buzz with life; only suits scurry from office to office, hardly noticing the warm Mediterranean shelter hidden behind the Radisson. What's good about this geographically challenged restaurant? For a start, the sensible menu. The many pastas (all under $10) were sorted into four groups -- cream, tomato, cream and tomato, garlic and oil - so we could zero in on our favorite basics, then refine our choices according to other ingredients. Before the pasta section we found a long list of antipasti and pizzas, grouped again, by thin or medium crust. The list of secondi, main courses, was kept manageably short to three veal and three chicken herb and black dishes. Of the two veal dishes, the vitello basilico promised much but delivered far too much. The too much was frangelico, a sweet hazelnut liqueur that overpowered the basil and even the nicely roasted pine nuts. I scraped off the sauce to enjoy the other ingredients that were fine. My partner's vitello scamorsa won the prize for the meal. A tender slice of veal, wrapped around spinach, smoked mozzarella and shrimp, was cooked in a way. to let all the individual flavors appear on their own. Many tried and failed but Carmello's succeeded. The tangy lemon and dill sauce provided an upbeat accompaniment and the colorful vegetables were cooked right. Dolce? Forget it. We were satiated after two and a half courses; it was too much of a good thing. Is that praise or criticism? It depends on what you think lunch and dinner should be. The lunch crowd could be happy with, pastas and pizzas; for dinner I would prefer a long classic Italian meal, portions sized small enough (or halved) to enjoy five courses without exploding. Good cooking, modestly priced wines, good value for money. Carmello's Gave Us Our Moneys Worth by Jennifer Jackson The problem with countries that are renowned for their cooking - Italy, China, France - is that it's such well travelled ground for the restaurateur to revisit. Not only must he live up to the grand traditions, he must compete with all the hot trends as well. Carmello's on the Sparks Street Mall acquits itself pretty well under the circumstances. As is the style these days, it's done in russets, ochre and mustard tones. It has high ceilings, hardwood floors, and chairs reminiscent of 1940s government-issue oak, as is also the style these days. It's a fairly large restaurant, with a huge patio on the mall just west of Bank Street. And it has an enormous menu covering antipasti, thin-crust pizzas, medium-crust pizzas, pastas (further grouped as to the sauce: tomato-based, creamy tomato, cream, and garlic and oil) and, finally, secondi or entrees covering various veal and chicken dishes with vegetables. The bread was home-made, yeasty and very fresh, flecked with some dried herb, which blindfolded we would not have guessed it was herb bread.

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