Best Italian '97

Best Italian

Caruso's
434 N. Fourth Ave.

READERS' PICK: Do you want to start a fight? Bite your opponent's ear. No wait, that's the way to end a fight. The way to start a fight is to state unequivocally that one Italian restaurant or another is the best in town. We're not going to get into that. All we know is that our readers love Caruso's on Fourth Avenue. And one reader tells us the calzones are to die for. Guys were taking their dates to Caruso's before heading off to World War II. Fifty years later, Caruso's is still the Italian restaurant of choice.

READERS' POLL RUNNER-UP: Gavi, 7865 E. Broadway

A REAL SCREAM: About four months ago, Ciao Italia, 1535 N.Stone Ave., reopened after an extensive hiatus due to fire. But numerous trips to the new incarnation have proved well worth the wait: A cheery yet intimate, well-lighted dining room, centered around an interior courtyard, provide an elegant setting for an even more elegant menu. Along with favorite pastas like spaghetti and linguine with marinara or alfredo, the house specialties here are Italian delicacies like fresh gnochi (a Northern Italian family recipe) and vegetable-stuffed ravioli and cannelloni. From antipasta to dessert, you're in for the finest the penninsula has to offer; and the charming host/proprietor gives us yet another reason to fall in love with this place all over again.

1998 Winner: Gavi
1996 Winner: Caruso's Restaurant
1995 Winner: Caruso's Restaurant