DeAnna’s

Here in Lambertville this newly expanded favorite maintains its character while serving fresh pasta and comfort food with a reverence for fine ingredients.

By:Tom and Kate O’Neill

DeAnna’s

54 North Franklin St.

Lambertville

(609) 397-8957

Food: Very good to excellent

Service: Friendly, well-informed

Prices: Reasonable

Cuisine: Italian fresco

Vegetarian Options: Many options on both regular and special menus; kitchen will accommodate wheat-sensitive diners

Ambience: Bistro, comfortable; upstairs room is nicer

Hours: Dinner: Tues.-Thurs. 5-9:30 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 5-10 p.m. (live jazz Saturdays starts at 8 p.m.); Sun. 4-8:30 p.m. (piano music 5-8 p.m.). Bar: opens at 4:30 p.m. and
stays open past dinner service.

Essentials: Accepts Visa and MasterCard; no checks; reservations suggested; off-street parking on side of building; seasonal outdoor dining; downstairs dining room wheelchair-accessible through kitchen (call ahead); restrooms not wheelchair-accessible; complete bar; entire
facility is smoke-free.

Directions

   DeAnna’s has been a popular dining spot in Lambertville for almost a decade. Last year, executive chef and owner DeAnna Paterra acquired the former Mason’s Bar, expanded it, and moved her previously pocket-
sized restaurant into the transformed 1850s building. Opened in February with generous space and a bigger kitchen, DeAnna’s now boasts a more extensive menu, seasonal outdoor dining, live jazz on Saturdays, and a wine list worth exploring. The restaurant may serve more diners now, but guests still enjoy personal service, and DeAnna’s renowned fresh pasta, along with comfort food that incorporates fine, fresh ingredients.
    The entrance to DeAnna’s opens onto a large horseshoe bar that fills half the space on the main floor. The bar, like the rest of the restaurant, is smoke free and some guests prefer to perch there and dine in its amiable atmosphere. A half wall separates the bar from the main dining area, with its banquettes and tables for two or more, set with white cloths protected by glass tops. Tucked into the back wall is the "Cell Phone Booth."
    Art deco sconces cast a pleasant light over the paprika-toned walls. Dark-stained woodwork and russet curtains lend visual warmth, while deep brown plantation blinds underscore DeAnna’s new "uptown" atmosphere. But there’s a light-hearted spirit here as well. On one wall a mural depicts fanciful figures that might have stepped from the pages of The New Yorker. On the back wall hang small, framed black-and-white photographs of animals. Snippets of conversation drift from one table to another, creating a pleasant counterpoint to the cool jazz on the sound system. A few steps down from the main floor is another, less congenial dining area, where a swinging door opens into the bright-lit, active kitchen.
    The reputation of DeAnna’s and many of its most popular dishes rests on the fresh pasta Ms. Paterra makes daily. On the regular menu alone, the diner can choose from eight pastas ($15.50 to $18), which may be ordered with arrabiata sauce, or clams and capers, or Bolognese, or prosciutto and peas, or sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts in cream sauce. DeAnna’s offers wide choices for vegetarian or vegan diners and can accommodate diners with wheat intolerance.
    The specials list is almost as long as the menu itself because, says Ms. Paterra, she gets lots of ideas and likes to try them. Some intriguing dishes are offered, but a printed list of specials would make it more likely that the diner would explore them. The night we dined there, the special appetizers and salads included vegan-friendly potato leek soup ($6), watercress salad with toasted sweet and spicy walnuts ($7.50), a baked eggplant Napoleon with marinara sauce ($9.50), and mussels, with either marinara or spicy fra diavolo sauce ($9.50/ $20 as an entrée).
    From the relatively brief but varied wine list, we selected a Treana Marsanne/Viognier 2001 ($45/
bottle) from California’s central coast. Those who like their white wines big and rich will enjoy this blend, reminiscent of wines from the Rhone. Those who like crisp wines with subtle overtones and less butter and vanilla will prefer another selection. The wine list also offers a well-chosen selection of classic, high-end Tuscan wines.
    We started with one of the special appetizers: four tiger shrimp sautéed in smoked paprika and topped with fresh basil ($9.50). Served in its own light sauté sauce, it topped a bed of cool spring greens that combined well with the zesty paprika. A daily feature of the menu is a small pizza, available as an appetizer ($7.50). This is not the familiar oven-baked pizza. Rather, it starts with a wafer-thin semolina crust, pan-
fried in olive oil, and topped, on this occasion, with caramelized onions, calamata olives, roasted peppers and a generous ladle of bright green pesto exuding the essence of basil.
    The entrée specials included meatloaf with pesto, provolone and marinara sauce ($20), a filet of trout in thyme-garlic butter ($24), and vegetable lasagna, also with marinara sauce ($17). Our server enthused over the roasted pork tenderloin special ($24), which turned out to be good advice. The pork was lean, cooked tender and juicy, and enhanced with a savory wild mushroom sauce. The chef’s added splash of heavy cream contributed substance, not weight, to the sauce, while a hint of Marsala added a grace note. The pork was served with apple slices and superb steamed broccoli, bursting thick with tiny florets and no trace of a fibrous stalk.
    From the regular menu, the pasta with sautéed chicken ($18) was served with mushrooms in Gorgonzola cream sauce. The creamy sauce tempered the bite of the robust, spicy Gorgonzola. While the distinctive flavor of the cheese was dominant, the quality of the fork-tender, juicy chicken breast and the simplicity of the al dente pasta kept the dish in balance. Both entrées were accompanied by the simple house salad of greens and radicchio dressed with a walnut vinaigrette.
    Desserts ($6.50 to $7.50 or $8.50 if paired with special gelato) are made in house. Special desserts included pumpkin ricotta cheesecake, apple tart and rum layer cake. We chose, instead, from the regular menu, the flourless mocha fudge cake — a good, but not sensational, dense chocolate and espresso cake served with orange sauce and grapes on the side.
    Lambertville is blessed. Here are to be found a small constellation of talented chefs like Ms. Paterra, who serve interesting food in a variety of settings. Utterly transformed in its new home, DeAnna’s retains its personal style and commitment to fresh interpretations of pasta and other favorite foods while offering a wealth of new choices, attractively presented in one of this small city’s most convivial dining environments.