Dining details: B&B Ristorante

B&B Ristorante

Rating: ***

Location: Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, 3355 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas; (702) 266-9977; www.mariobatali.com/ restaurants_bb.html

Ambience: Clubby Italian restaurant tucked at the back of the Venetian’s restaurant row next to the Blue Man theater. The understated decor features warm cream walls, lots of dark wood and soft lighting. In fact, it’s so unglitzy, it’s hard to remember you’re in Vegas when you’re dining here. Rock music playing off an iPod revs up the noise level, but it’s never so loud you can’t talk. From Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich: A serious restaurant that’s fun.

Service: Spot on.

Price: Antipasti, $13 to $19; primi, $19 to $31; secondi, $29 to $49; contorni (vegetable sides), $9; seven-course pasta tasting menu, $85 per person; six-course traditional tasting menu, $85 per person; wine pairings for tasting menus, $65 per person.

Best dishes: Marinated fresh anchovies Giardiniera, grilled octopus with borlotti beans, prosciutto San Daniele riserva, tagliatelle with butter and summer truffles, goose liver ravioli with balsamic vinegar and brown butter, spaghettini with spicy budding chives and lobster, brasato al barolo with horseradish gremolata, fennel-dusted sweetbreads, roasted potatoes with rosemary, cherry torta with clover honey ricotta, bomboloni.

Wine list: Impressive for its breadth of Italian labels and vintages. Markups are high, though you can still find some bottles under $50, as well as vino al quartino -- wines by the quarter liter (250 ml). No outside wine permitted.

Best table: In the back corner.

Details: Open for dinner only, 5 to 11 p.m. daily. Full bar. Free valet parking at the Venetian.

Rating is based on food, service and ambience, with price taken into account in relation to quality. ****: Outstanding on every level. ***: Excellent. **: Very good. *: Good. No star: Poor to satisfactory.