Il Fornaio Delivers on an Ambitious Undertaking

When it opened its massive portals a few years back, Il Fornaio Cucina Gastronomia was, without doubt, the most ambitious Italian restaurant Orange County had ever seen. It still is.

In case you are not familiar with the Il Fornaio name, it refers to an international chain of bakeries and restaurants, about two dozen, a good half of them in Italy (as the carved stone tableau by the main entrance spells out).

The Irvine branch cost nearly $4 million, and it shows. This enormous, free-standing palazzo features an Art Deco bar stocked to the ceiling with bottles artfully arranged on shelves of resplendent glass. Next door is an equally well-stocked espresso bar and bakery. A gorgeous outdoor patio is attached to the main building just for smokers. (There is no smoking inside.)

Across a small expanse you find an actual boccie ball court, presumably so the Italians among the restaurant’s large staff can play this ancient game at their whim. The staff must also be happy that not much lifestyle adjustment is necessary when it comes to dining. Il Fornaio’s food is quite close to what one eats in Italy, and the restaurant is prosperous enough to include dishes from the Alps to Sicily on its impressive menu.

This prosperity spills over into happy hour, when there are such great free hors d’oeuvres in the bar as fresh pizza, eggplant rolled with goat cheese and fabulous bruschetta .

The opulence extends to service, too: Unlike many understaffed dining spots, Il Fornaio has extra busboys who do nothing but rove around filling water glasses, replenishing your basket of bread sticks and ciabatta (a flattish Italian country bread) and generally pampering you.

Speaking of being pampered, try booking a table in the Rotonda, located smack in the center of the restaurant. It’s a private room completely exposed to the sky, done in an intimate, rustic style--the tables have varnished wooden tops rather than the white tablecloths on the more claustrophobic tables that run around the perimeter of the building or skirt the bar. The Rotonda is more casual and a whole lot quieter.

Il Fornaio hit the ground running when it opened; the interesting thing is that it seems even better today. About a year ago, Florence-trained chef Marcello Appolonio took charge and smoothed out some of the original wrinkles. The spit-roasted meats are juicier now, the pastas more consistently al dente.

This is a menu in which one easily can get lost, so it’s a good idea to order judiciously. My favorite appetizer is still bomba , a focaccia hot from the oak-burning oven, puffed up into a dome and covered with smoked prosciutto di Parma and a suspicion of truffle oil. The waiters still make a production out of cutting it, at which point it deflates to cracker dimensions.

A close second is the polenta con gamberi . It’s a very soft polenta to begin with, and the intense shrimp broth makes it almost soupy. This is a dish I literally dream about.

I have to complain about the pappa con pomodoro , though. In the right hands, this simple Tuscan specialty made from soaked bread, chunked tomato and lots of olive oil can be wonderful, but Il Fornaio’s version has a rough texture and an unappealing, sour aftertaste.

There are plenty more primi not to miss, though. Tortino di riso con funghi is a crisp, delicious rice pancake topped with fresh mushrooms. Focaccia al stracchino is a flat bread with a thin filling of pungent stracchino cheese, pine nuts, basil and onions (which won’t, incidentally, remind you of pesto a bit, despite the similar ingredients--it’s mostly cheese with just a kiss of herbs, and the nuts are roasted whole, not pureed into the mixture).

You’ll do well to order any pizza here, but two deserve particular note. Pizza raggio di sole is topped with discrete portions of black olives, smoked mozzarella, eggplant, ricotta and fresh tomato. Pizza con la luganega comes with smoked sausage, roasted peppers and a liberal sprinkling of oregano.

The pastas tend to be very rich. Take ravioli di verdura con salsa di noci , which has a filling of spinach, Swiss chard and basil in a pine nut and walnut sauce. Another diet-breaker is lasagna d’anatra : sheets of pasta layered with finely minced duck ragout and marinara and bechamel sauces.

If you’re not up to the likes of those, the place makes a good angel hair al pomodoro naturale . Or you could try pennette all’amatriciana --chewy little tubes in a fresh tomato sauce with Italian bacon and pecorino cheese.

The main dishes are mostly meats from the rotisserie, mostly served with polenta, white Tuscan beans and fragrant steamed spinach. Coniglio con pancetta and anatra al balsamico are on an insert menu, and both are terrific. The first is tender Sonoma rabbit wrapped in Italian bacon, the second Petaluma duck brushed with balsamic vinegar. A pair of carnivores could share the 22-ounce bistecca alla Fiorentina , marinated in olive oil and rosemary. Fish lovers will cotton to Norwegian salmon or swordfish, both mesquite-grilled.

There are at least 10 desserts, so hang on tight. If the chefs are up to it, you can’t go wrong with a plate of cookies from the adjoining bakery, called biscotti assortiti . If the cookies are not available, try the lightest tiramisu in Orange County, the meringue torte with whipped cream and shaved Belgian chocolate, or the budino di pane , a rich bread pudding.

Caesar, say honorable men, was ambitious, and surely ambition is a grievous fault. But not in a restaurant.

Il Fornaio is expensive. Antipasti are $4.75 to $7.95. Pizzas are $7.75 to $10.95. Pastas are $7.95 to $11.95. Main dishes are $9.50 to $18.50. Desserts are $3.75 to $5.25.

* IL FORNAIO GASTRONOMIA ITALIANA

* 18051 Von Karman Ave., Irvine.

* (714) 261-1444.

* 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday, till midnight Friday and Saturday; 5 to 11 p.m. Sunday.

* All major cards.