First-time diners get warm welcome at North Beach Italian Bistro

Tips come in from many different places, and in this case it was a regular reader and dedicated fan of a restaurant who just wouldn’t give up.

But, I told him, I’d looked at the menu on the restaurant’s website and didn’t think it was much different from any other Italian restaurant in the valley. Ah, but he told me, the difference was in the welcoming, friendly atmosphere.

So finally I went. And he was right, of course. We felt warmly welcomed to North Beach Italian Bistro from the point where we entered and were greeted by a man with a proprietary air to the delivery of complimentary tiramisu, apparently because, as we’d acknowledged, we were first-time customers.

But the good things certainly didn’t end there. The bistro is in one half of Bogey’s poker bar, in an arrangement that seems much more successful than these things tend to be. Call to check hours and the man answers, “Bogey’s and North Beach.” Enter the restaurant — separated from the bar by two doors and a small lobby — and you’ll find they’ve done a lot with the place, including rich dark-red walls lined with Italian portrait prints, two water walls and lighted translucent stone beneath the restaurant’s bar.

Service was excellent. Our server was obviously an Italian native but enunciated so clearly that her heavy accent was no obstacle. The runner, too, was pleasant and friendly.

And the food: Prosciutto and mozzarella ($12.95) didn’t sound like much but was fantastic — four thick slabs of fresh cheese each topped with a large basil leaf, a quarter of a pizzetta crust, a tangle of prosciutto and a drizzle of olive oil.

Saltimbocca di pollo ($14.95), listed as one of the restaurant’s specialties, wasn’t so much a classic saltimbocca (no sage leaves) but a sort of a cross with a picatta, with a butter-wine sauce with a touch of lemon. This one came with a mound of mashed potatoes and sauteed fresh squash and carrots.

Cavatelli alla Caserta ($13.95), the chewy pasta bathed in both marinara and Bolognese and topped with a mound of ricotta, its creamy blandness a complementary contrast to the acidic sauces.

And finally the tiramisu (normally $4.95), made in-house, our server assured us — and, as we noticed, in the classic, old-fashioned way, with lady fingers instead of the spongecake that’s often substituted. It was creamy, slightly chocolately, slightly coffee-y and extremely delicious.

So no, you won’t find many surprises on the menu at North Beach Italian Bistro. But as Italian restaurants go, it’s definitely in the upper tier.

Las Vegas Review-Journal restaurant reviews are done anonymously at Review-Journal expense. E-mail Heidi Knapp Rinella at Hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Find more of her stories at reviewjournal.com and bestoflasvegas.com, and follow @HKRinella on Twitter.