Nonna is among the premiere spots in Dallas to suit up, belly up, and eat like a Caesar. It’s a pleasant lull in the mostly wretched landscape of Dallas’s Italian cuisine. While not strictly authentic regional Italian fare, Nonna employs Italian culinary simplicity while meshing influences and ingredients from all over the boot.

You’ll love the house-made salumi and creations from the wood-fired oven—Nonna’s blazing focal point—such as the housemade lamb sausage and chops with corona beans. Pastas are delicious (sometimes with sea urchin)—such as the tortelloni of porchetta with dried orange zest and fennel pollen—and always reach al dente nirvana. Even simple things stun, like the porchetta and broccoli rabe sandwich with addictive potato chips—crispy on the outside, but just thick enough to provide a slight chewiness.

It’s an intimate, meticulously trimmed dining room with exposed brick, sexy curvaceous accents, and large picture window portals that separate dining room from bar—odes to shameless voyeurism. Crowds build quickly and emit a fortissimo chattering racket. Plus service can be inconsistent. But this tiny trattoria provides among the most distinctively memorable dining experiences in the city.