Ziti's goes beyond pasta and pizza.

• Author: Datz, Bob
• Position: Living

Byline: Bob Datz

Ziti's Italian Trattoria

1/2

290 Turnpike Road ( Route 9 ), Westboro

Phone: (508) 898-2282

Web: zitisitaliantrattoria.com/

Hours: noon-9 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday

Parking/access: Plaza parking lot, no stairs

Prices: Moderate, dinners $13.95-$18.95

Credit Cards: MasterCard, Visa, Discover, American Express

Pluses: Italian all the way with plenty of fresh, hot selections to suit. Clean and friendly.

Minuses: Some atmospheric touches, even disposable tablecloths, would doll things up nicely.

Despite a dual personality as a daytime deli-style carryout-sitdown, Ziti's in the Speedway Plaza more than makes the grade as a moderately priced trattoria during dinner hours.

Its ample menu was striking the first time I came for a midday counter pickup, but a Thursday evening meal for three was a good opportunity to drink it in as a dining venue. And it went down easily, from an opening glass of Chianti through a perfectly brewed espresso.

Servers Zachery and Dot were ready and waiting as the crowd half-filled the main dining area after our 6:30 arrival. While we took our sweet time, I noticed other parties one-coursed and were out fairly rapidly.

There's a smaller, cuter, more intimate cafe section where the pours and desserts come from, empty on this night. The bare square tabletops in most cases have leaves to make them larger and round, but without any coverings, the leaf hinges seemed like military hardware marring the softer touches, including arched white walls that separate the two rooms. A muted musical backdrop is Italian all the way, from a traditional "O Sole Mio'' to Dion (DiMucci) and The Belmonts' "The Wanderer.''

A busy crew works an open grille and saute area to the rear. The ambience, bathed in daylight from the shopping plaza's large glass panes, benefit if a to-go menu board wasn't looming above the prep area as in a typical pizza joint. But again, that dual personality allows the place to thrive as a daytime deli.

We heard how Ziti's doesn't have a microwave or fryolator and the pizza is thin crust, only available 16 inches across. The pizza/sandwiches menu would not occupy us on this night.

But two appetizers would: Eggplant Rolletini with proscuitto ($7.95) and Bruschetta, a black-peppery tomato chunk style ($4.95). Pizza bread and mussels were available at prices in between. The rolletini wasn't the world's best, with the proscuitto a little unevenly distributed, but with ricotta and a pleasant...