By Jim Duncan CVFDude@aol.com

What's an old-fashioned Italian cafè doing in the franchise fiefdom of Urbandale?
"We went out for a pizza and came home with a restaurant," says Colleen Pagano. After her husband Mike discovered that Joe Corso's had closed, he ran Corso down in Las Vegas, bought his equipment, remodeled the joint, named it Nana's, and was back in an old family business. A first generation Sicilian-American, Mike worked in his father's place, Leo's, on Southeast 14th Street from the 1950s to the 1970s. Nana's majordomo Dominick "Mico" Colosimo owned Dominick's, Mico's and Cafè Calabria. And together they have created a most un-suburban atmosphere, an "everybody-knows-your-name" oasis in a strip mall at a busy intersection.

Colosimo works the floor like the restaurateurs of lore, the Joe Giudecessis and Babe Bisignanos. He remembers everyone's name and makes everyone feel glad they stopped in.

"Hey, you're using the good stuff. I had a girlfriend like that - extra virgin."

"Now you've done it. You know you only get one fork here. Even if you come back tonight, you don't get another fork."

"I don't want to see you in here again... before tonight."

Also adding ambiance were: Doug Applegate murals; fresh flowers on every table; and a condiment rack that included olive oil, balsamic vinegar, grated Parmesano and dried red chilies.

However, the main culinary attraction was Nana's meatballs, quite possibly the best in town. It's a delectable combination of veal, pork and beef, browned and smooth. I tried them as a side with pasta, as a sandwich, on a soft hoagie bun and as the filling in some marvelous stuffed peppers. They are offered as an option to Graziano sausage on most pasta dishes.

Homemade marinara was sweet, brilliantly colored and ubiquitous, appearing in everything from sautèed mussels to chicken Parmesano and steak pizzaiola. Veal piccata was light on capers, strong on lemon and artichokes, more leaves than hearts. (All veal dishes are cut from fresh veal and hand-treated.) The pappardelle that accompanied the veal disappointed - overcooked, ordinary pasta.

Salad dressings were all homemade, including an interesting bacon dressing from the Colosimo family archives. "Cioppino" came from a Pagano family recipe for frutti di mare, made from a stock of tomatoes, clams and wine. Stuffed banana peppers were secret prizes, for those who don't mind some difficulty in peeling.

Certain expectations for Italian dining in Des Moines did not stamp their passport to Urbandale: no chicken liver dishes, no homemade sausage (Although Graziano's is a good substitute) and no homemade pasta. Still the lasagna deserved its solid reputation, and the linguine worked fine in a pasta gamberi. Spinach ravioli missed the textures one expects in this town. And the pizza really left me wanting. Even the thin crust was thick with chewy white dough, reminding us more of big delivery chain pies than of Chuck's, Noah's or Centro.

Other expectations were met: homemade breadsticks mixed with good South Union breads; steak de burgo was of the Italian butter and wine variety; antipasti was pure South Side. American tastes were covered with burgers, chicken tenders, fries, onion rings, Cobb salad and sweet-basted BBQ ribs. Plus there was a kids' menu.

Cannoli was the best dessert, stuffed with homemade ricotta cream. Tiramisu and carrot cake were chilled to the point they lost the illusion of freshness. Beer and wine were served in an accommodating manner, by the glass and in frosted mugs, respectively. But there was no espresso.

Wait staff was friendly, but took short cuts. Empty water glasses were slow to be refilled and to-go bags were left for diners to pack.

Food News

Trostel's Greenbriar was named Innovator of the Year by the National Cattle Industry. That group gave the Johnston restaurant Beef Backer Awards for creatively utilizing underused cuts of beef (flat-iron steak with gremolade rub crostini, chipotle steak salad) and for marketing quality beef (lollipop ribeye).

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