Sal Rose, Mt Albert

Sal Rose's pizzas are definitely worth a try. Picture / Fotopress

Herald rating: * * * *

Luckily for locals Sal Rose, Country Italian, has just opened its doors in Alberton Ave. It's not the sort of location in which you'd you'd expect to find a bustling suburban eatery of a reasonable standard.

Golden retriever Tequila and I discovered Sal Rose (next to the fruit, vegetable and wine store) while taking a morning walkabout not far from the office.

The dog, as usual, got all the attention, a bowl of water in the bricked courtyard and some of my toast. I enjoyed my flat white and newspaper while the waitress proudly told me that the pizza oven had just been installed.

So on Sunday night we decided to check out this packed restaurant where we'd managed to secure a table for four at 8pm, the earliest time a table was free. As a bonus, parking is a right outside the door — the restaurant is located off the shoppers' carpark.

The owners of Sal Rose have managed to turn a formerly ordinary space into a warm, tastefully fitted out local, with dark wood panelling and crackle-glazed rich cream walls, recessed ceiling panels and imported Italian light fittings in keeping with the rustic feel. In another scene you can almost imagine Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini appear with rest of the cast from The Big Night (the famous Italian foodie film).

We were feeding three hungry men and so decided in a short space of time that we would start with pizza and a plate of crispy fried calamari with spicy tomato sauce while we considered the mains.

A simple menu of appetizers, pizza, pasta, mains, sides and dessert covers all the popular dishes that you would expect from this type of family restaurant.

We settled in with a bottle of Falesco Vitiano IGT Sangiovese merlot cabernet sauvignon 2003 and caught up with each other's news.

The Sal Rose pizzas are definitely worthy of mention. They come with a crisp, blistered crust, with a sprinkling of cornmeal on the underside and just the right amount of tomato sauce to complement the other ingredients. We enjoyed the Capricciosa — topped with anchovies, grilled eggplant, olives, basil, mozzarella, herbs— and the Four Cheese, a golden, toasty disc with blue, brie, parmesan and mozzarella.

Uncle and nephew toss to decide who gets the osso bucco and country style sausage with pasta. Simon gets his favoured garlic prawns and I opt for the veal marsala. Our mains are generous portions, simple, and deliver what the menu says they will. At Sal Rose, you are not expecting fine dining-room fare, just good food simply cooked and presented.

Both the osso bucco and veal are tender and come with asparagus spears and buttery mash. Paul's rigatoni arrives in a gigantic bowl, doesn't set the world alight but has a good amount of Italian sausage, tomato and garlic sauce and feta.

Simon's garlic prawns, which come with salad, don't even touch the sides but the one I tried was true to form — garlicky and crisp.

Our desserts are also straightforward fare, but Simon's glazed lemon tart with soft cream and lemon syrup gets a satisfied grunt and grin.

Service: Attentive, smiling, switched on front-of-house staff are what make this place a gem.

Toilets: Clean and roomy, they come with a mini lesson in Italian culinary terms. The speakers are hooked up to a looped tape giving both English and Italian translations.

WHERE: Sal Rose, 1a Alberton Ave, Mt Albert, Auckland. Ph (09) 8455331, closed Mondays

OUR MEAL: $233.50 for 4; appetizers $5.50-$18.50 (antipasto plate) pizza $13.50-$19.50; pasta $15.50-$19.50; mains $18.50-$26.50; desserts $8.50

OUR WINES: by the glass $6-$11; by the bottle $25.50-$99.50; bubbles $29.50-$125

* Read more about what's happening in the world of food, wine, party places and entertainment in canvas magazine, part of your Weekend Herald print edition.