7:20 p.m. We're early for a 7:30 reservation, but that doesn't appear to be a problem at Tavolino Ristorante Italiano — plenty of tables are open. Still, we aren't seated until 7:35. 8 p.m. We spend our time taking in the cozy ambience. Tables are kissing close, topped with white cloths and flickering candles. Pictures of chef Massimo Tenino and his family in Italy spruce up the main dining room; pictures of his toddler son are in the next-door space. Tenino expanded his four-year-old restaurant to the space next door in late 2006. For a while, it was a deli called DiLuca with its own distinct personality. These days, it's merged with Tavolino and serves nicely as a place to score lunch and as an overflow dining room for dinner. Owned by Tenino and his wife, Deborah, Tavolino is a hip restaurant with loyal customers who chat with the staff and one another as they wait patiently for a table. We, however, are losing our patience just as a nice young busboy comes by with water and bread. The crusty, yeasty bread cooked in a wood-burning stove — Tavolino's lunchtime pizzas use the same dough — is crazy fresh and dolled up with big specks of salt. After a dipping in the too-small dish of fruity olive oil, it is devoured quickly. 8:10 p.m. A waitress stops by to explain the specials and ask for drink orders. Sparkling water, please. 8:20 p.m. She asks for our drink orders again. Our reply sparks her memory. "Oh, you already gave your order." It is then that we finally give our dinner order. Things moved more smoothly after that (until we had to wait for the bill, that is). And on a second visit, 30 minutes were shaved off the wait time. Still too long. But there are reasons why people wait in long lines to dine at Tavolino: pastas, Italian sauces made with a loving hand and killer desserts. And appetizers like the Bruschetta al Pomodoro ($8.75), Italian bread grilled to a golden color, swiped with olive oil and topped with sweet, sweet tomatoes and sprigs of fresh basil. Rich with textures and fat with flavors, the dish is an indication that the restaurant lavishes attention on even the most simple offerings. The Insalata di Mare ($12.75) had a bed of greens happily weighed down with an abundance of glistening-from-olive-oil calamari, slightly chewy and slightly sweet. There were also a few small — and tasteless — shrimp. We skipped most of those and headed right for the calamari. The Penne alla Boscaiola ($16.75) cheered us with a light tomato sauce cut with cream that pooled ever so slightly inside the tubes of al dente pasta. The Italian sausage was scarce and on the meek side, but the mushrooms were abundant and added an earthy element to the dish. Fish lovers will savor the Salmone Grigliato ($16.75), a fillet of farm-raised salmon grilled to a crispy outside and a moist medium rare inside. It was topped with a gentle lemon parsley sauce that served the fresh fish very well. There are missteps, to be sure. The Pollo Marinato ($16.75) starred an overcooked chicken breast that wasn't made any more tender or juicy as a result of a bath in lime juice. But the chunks of crispy roasted potatoes put us in a forgiving mood, as did the just-crisp-enough vegetable medley of squash, snow peas and carrots. The Trenette (long, narrow pasta) al Pesto Genovese ($14.75) contained a pesto sauce that was oddly bland. The chef was stingy with the garlic. And if there were pine nuts in the dish, they were few and pulverized so that the pesto was robbed of the barely chunky texture that is part of the joy of eating the basil dish. And while the green beans were snappy, the dish was awfully green. It cries out for color — perhaps of a few tomato chunks. But then dessert came. The Bonet ($7) is a near-spiritual experience. A silky, rich chocolate custard drizzled with gooey, intense caramel sauce and served with a healthy dollop of whipped cream and a crisp, airy amaretti (that's a macaroon with the bare hint of almond). Heaven. As was the tiramisu ($7), with sweet mascarpone, a dusting of cocoa, delicate ladyfingers and a heavy — but not too — coffee flavor. On both visits, we left happily satisfied with the food but disappointed in the service. We know that all good things come to those who wait. We just wish we didn't have to wait so long.