La Viola   

La Viola: Yet another lesson that wonderful things sometimes come in nondescript packages. Keep your eyes open as you walk down 16th Street, or else you may miss it altogether. Once you get past the front stoop and open the door of La Viola, you'll find yourself in an "intimate" dining room, which seats about 35. (There is no waiting area, so be sure to make reservations.) Lunch and dinner menus are available, and prices are reasonable. The dinner menu's salads include an antipasto mista -- the chef's daily selection of traditional Italian delicacies -- and grigliata di calamari, grilled calamari marinated in lemon juice, with garlic and peppered olive oil. The pasta dishes include a gnocchi al filetto di pomodoro, spinach and ricotta cheese with homemade gnocchi in a tomato basil sauce. Be sure to bring (several) bottles of wine with you (there is a good wine store at 1318 Walnut St.) and plenty of cash -- they don't accept credit cards here.