RESTAURANT REVIEW : New Market City : Burbank’s version of the popular Pasadena cafe puts its sister restaurant to shame.

The new Market City Caffe may not yet be the crowning touch in the resurgence of downtown Burbank, but it is impressive--and surely the best restaurant yet from the prolific Sal Casola.

Casola’s Rose City Diner and Market City Caffe practically started the frantic development in Old Town Pasadena, and perhaps this restaurant--along with the giant movie complex next door--will play a part in revitalizing what once was a drab part of Burbank.

To my mind, this Market City is a big improvement on the Pasadena edition. The food is livelier and the design is a whole lot snappier--the place is big and airy, with an abundance of louvered windows opening directly out onto the street. All anybody ever remembers of Pasadena’s Market City is the outdoor patio.

The walls have that sponged-siena look you envision finding in Florence or Turin, set off nicely by a striking, modish, blue-black tile floor. Food comes out in waves from the partially open kitchen, brought to your table by a team of fresh-faced waiters and waitresses who appear genuinely happy to be serving you.

And the dishes surprise by how consistently good they are. This is a volume restaurant, true, where tables have been turning in rapid-fire fashion since day one, but the food actually tastes like it has been cared for. And the menu isn’t afraid to take chances, either.

The first hint that you’re in for a treat comes when giant, chewy bread sticks come hot to the table. These huge things, as long as Salonen’s baton and two inches thick, are mere harbingers of the enormous quantities to come.

The panini (Italian sandwiches) are so gigantic most people barely finish half. One is made made from thick-sliced roast turkey, smack in the middle of a chewy white bread dome garnished with good Roma tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, crisp lettuce and olive oil. The chicken sandwich is a bit more creative, and I actually prefer it to the turkey. It’s fashioned out of breast meat, arugula, lemon zest and a spicy mustard, and it’s big too. Everybody--repeat, everybody --takes a piece home in a Styrofoam box.

The pizza section is packed with high-concept favorites, all sporting puffy, yeasty crusts. Pizza ai funghi gets a generous heap of wild and domestic mushrooms, and a handful of chopped garlic for good measure. The spinach pizza is dressed up with pine nuts and ricotta cheese, and pizza Roma, my personal fave, has lots of salty prosciutto, oil-cured olives, tomato, ricotta and Parmesan.

Forgive me if I gloss over the restaurant’s vaunted antipasto bar, a huge table filled with salads, cheeses, clams, calamari, cold cuts and even pastas. This one ranks with the most colorful, well-stocked ones anywhere, and the people are just wild for it. Unfortunately, I rank salad bars and buffets just above combat rations, so I’m not qualified to give an opinion.

Pastas and grills come in laughably large portions, of course, so you’d better restrict yourself to one or the other. The best pasta might be penne al sugo di pomodoro e salsiccia, where the short, chewy tubes of penne are tossed with a thick tomato sauce, big chunks of sweet Italian sausage, basil, garlic and a liberal sprinkling of red chili flakes.

Just when you think you can’t eat another bite, out comes the dessert tray. Save room, if possible, for the ricotta cheesecake, the firm, creamy tirami su, and the star of the list--a dense slice of rich fudge the restaurant calls chocolate walnut cranberry torte.

Wow. Downtown Burbank may become a destination yet.

Where and When

Location: Market City Caffe, 164 E. Palm Ave., Burbank

Suggested Dishes: Scamorza alla griglia, $5.95; roast chicken panino, $6.95; pizza Roma, $8.25; penne al sugo di pomodoro e salsiccia, $8.95; pollo alla diavolo, $9.95.

Hours: Lunch and dinner 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday. Full bar. Valet parking on Palm Avenue.

Price: Dinner for two $25 to $35. All major cards.

Call: (818) 840-7036.