Dado Brings Italian Influence to Sawtelle

The stretch of Sawtelle Boulevard just north of Olympic Boulevard is getting to be quite the restaurant row, with Sawtelle Kitchen, 2117, Yakitori-ya, and now (next to Shabu Shabu), a new Italian place called Dado (which means a single “dice” in Italian). It’s a tall handsome space with tables outside on the sidewalk and an open kitchen featuring a wood-burning pizza oven and a chef with a Roman nose and a floppy black chef’s hat.

The pizzas, in fact, are the best items here. Thin-crusted, they come topped with tomatoes, spicy sausage and mozzarella (diavola); sliced pears and Gorgonzola; tomatoes, mozzarella, capers, anchovies and oregano (Napoli) and more. If the rest of the menu looks familiar, that’s because one of the partners is Cesare Vietina, whose family owns Madeo in West Hollywood and Principe in Beverly Hills. You’d think he and partner Tony Miano would want to distinguish Dado from those and other generic Italian restaurants in L.A., but no. Dado toes a tried-and-true line. Which would be fine if these dishes were actually something that bears repeating. As it is, the pastas I tried on a recent evening were oversauced and overcooked. My lasagna of fresh pasta layered with cheese and a meat ragu was soft as baby food. And artichokes supposedly alla Giudea (in the style of the Jewish quarter in Rome) didn’t resemble the authentic fried artichokes in the least. Salmon carpaccio is drowned in dressing. And bistecca Fiorentina is only a half-inch thick instead of the hefty 2-inch steak you’d be served in Florence.

Still, Dado is a welcome addition to a neighborhood short on stylish Italian restaurants, a good address to keep in mind if you ever have a hankering for a thin-crusted pizza and a bottle of Chianti.

BE THERE

Dado, 2002 Sawtelle Blvd., West Los Angeles, (310) 575-1544. Open Monday-Friday for lunch; Monday-Saturday for dinner. Appetizers $2.50 to $12; main courses $9 to $19.50; chef’s suggestion (one appetizer, one pasta or main course from the grill, one dessert) $25. Parking in back.