Cariera's

Charming little Italian restaurant with authentic Italian cuisine. Portions are big enough for two. In two cozy rooms, with bare wooden tables and thick cloth napkins and walls full of family photographs and wine and oil bottles, Cariera’s turns out a familiar array of old-fashioned classics. As befits a restaurant with few pretensions, most patrons do not dress up for a night out at Cariera’s, even from Wednesday through Saturday when they feature mellow live music. The serviceable list of 20 California and Italian wines, split evenly between red and white, is fairly marked up, with most less than $30. And the house wine, at $22.95 a liter for a decent pinot grigio or chianti of Italian origin, is another option. As for brandy, it is difficult to resist ordering an earthy grappa along with dessert (or maybe for dessert), considering the price — $3.50.