DINING UPDATES
The price is right at Vaso Azzurro
Stylish food, decor in Mountain View

Miriam Morgan, Chronicle Asst. Food Editor

URL: sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/reviews/restaurants/6509401717.DTL

In the two years that Vaso Azzurro has been open, the Mountain View restaurant has continued to turn out some very good food at some very reasonable prices. These days, that's not easy.

The restaurant, at the foot of Castro Street near the CalTrain station, anchors one end of what is essentially a three-block multicultural buffet. Castro is lined with ethnic restaurants of all sorts, many in bare-bones settings. But Vaso Azzurro's surroundings are more comfortable, offering an Italian-Provencal menu in a fairly stylish milieu.

The narrow restaurant features sponge-washed, dark peach walls hung with paintings and decorative shelves. Backlit floor-to-ceiling shelves toward the rear of the room, screening off a partially open kitchen, hold glass vases in all hues -- including the vaso azzurro (blue vase) after which the restaurant is named.

The mostly well-prepared food fits the decor -- fairly upscale and contemporary, yet still familiar.

Starters include moules a la Marsellaise ($7.95) -- a plate of just a few sauteed mussels, served chilled and accompanied by a tuft of greens. It's a far cry from the usual bowl of steamed mussels, but is intriguing and fresh- tasting. So is the salade d'encornads ($6.95) -- a heaping plate of garlicky poached calamari and diced fresh tomatoes, dressed in a lemon herb vinaigrette.

Insalata trevisana ($6.95), a mix of spinach, arugula, radicchio, endive, crumbled Gorgonzola and caramelized walnuts, is also well worth ordering.

Entrees include nicely prepared veal, chicken, seafood and pasta dishes. Vitello alla Fiorentina ($15.95) brings tender veal cutlets wrapped around a spinach-risotto filling, with mushrooms and a Madeira sauce. A well-balanced fettuccine Azzurro ($13.95), topped with sauteed mussels, shrimp and scallops, is bound in a light garlic-saffron white wine sauce.

A similar seafood risotto dish offered as a frequent special ($18.95) lacks the trademark creaminess of the dish. But the kitchen bounces back with halibut prepared in a variety of ways, another common special ($18.95). One night's pan-seared version with sauteed spinach and mushrooms in a sherry wine sauce was especially good, if you ignore the pedestrian potato wedges and vegetable medley alongside it.

The short dessert menu focuses on Italian-inspired dishes. Rococo ($4.95), a frozen cake with chocolate pastry cream, chocolate sauce and cherries, sounds like a potential mess but is surprisingly good. So is the torta di formaggio ($4.50), a light, crumbly-style cheesecake.

The wine list is more than adequate, as is the service -- it's informed, attentive and well paced. Even with all the dining choices on the street, Vaso Azzurro is worth a visit.

Address: 108 Castro St. (near Villa Street), Mountain View

Phone:(650) 940-1717

Hours: Lunch 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday, dinner 4:30-10:30 p.m. daily. Reservations and credit cards accepted. Free parking garage behind the restaurant.

E-mail Miriam Morgan at mmorgan@sfchronicle.com.

						OVERALL:      TWO AND A HALF STARS
						   Food:         TWO AND A HALF STARS
						   Service:      TWO AND A HALF STARS
						   Atmosphere:   TWO STARS
						   .
						   PRICES:      $$
						   NOISE RATING:     FOUR BELLS
						

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						   RATINGS KEY
						   FOUR STARS:       Extraordinary
						   THREE STARS:      Excellent
						   TWO STARS:        Good
						   ONE STAR:         Fair
						   (box):            Poor
						   .
						   $     Inexpensive:      entrees under $10
						   $$    Moderate:         $10-$17
						   $$$   Expensive:        $18-$24
						   $$$$  Very Expensive:   more than $25
						   Prices based on main courses. When entrees fall between these categories, 
						the prices of appetizers help determine the dollar ratings.
						   .     ONE BELL:       Pleasantly quiet (under 65 decibels)
						   TWO BELLS:      Can talk easily (65-70)
						   THREE BELLS:    Talking normally gets difficult (70-75)
						   FOUR BELLS:     Can only talk in raised voices (75-80)
						   BOMB:           Too noisy for normal conversation (80+)
						   .
						   Chronicle critics make every attempt to remain anonymous.
						   All meals are paid for by the Chronicle.
						   Star ratings are based on a minimum of three visits.
						   Ratings are updated continually based on a least one revisit.