A new sight to see in Dorchester

Tavolo on Dorchester Avenue has an enticing atmosphere and serves up a killer meatball panini. (JOHN BOHN/GLOBE STAFF)

An early taste of what's new on the restaurant scene

We wish we could have seen this. To hear the waitstaff tell it, a bit of comedy played out on Dot. Ave. earlier this week. As people walked by Tavolo, a new restaurant in the Carruth condo complex, some of the restaurant's staff handed out samples of gelato. Some people took them, a few asked what it was ("Italian ice cream, it's good!," they were told), and others downright scrunched up their noses and kept walking.

As our hostess told us earlier this week over dinner: "This isn't necessarily a gelato kind of neighborhood, but we're going to train it to be."

And Tavolo very well could do that. It's the latest venture from restaurateur Chris Douglass of Icarus fame. Of course, he already struck gold three years ago in Dorchester with Ashmont Grill just around the corner (500 yards away, to be precise). If he's going to compete with anyone, it might as well be himself, says the press release.

Except the two dining spots don't feel terribly similar. A few days before we visited Tavolo, we dined at Ashmont Grill to remind us of its plentiful charms, though the snail-like service on the patio wasn't among them. Ashmont Grill is where you celebrate special occasions with good company over good food. Or if you live nearby, you're here every Monday and the staff calls you by name.

Opened earlier this month, Tavolo is more casual, perfect for parking it at the bar to watch the game on the overheard screens or getting a pizza for takeout. Its menu is more straightforward with a simple selection of antipasti, salads, a minestrone soup, some paninis, pizzas, and pasta entrees.

It's easy on the eyes, too. Pickle-green walls hold colorful artwork of roosters, and in the main dining room, you'll be tempted to run your hands along the walls. They look like giant blackboards, which they are, and local artist Kiki Ikura decorated them with sorts of cute drawings and quotes ("I love pizza"). And Tavolo bears the ultimate tell-tale sign of a place that might be hipper than its clientele: unisex bathrooms with unmarked doors.

The food is good but maybe not as enticing as the atmosphere, at least not yet. It's getting there, though. We start with an assortment of antipasti, served in single-serving little bowls, to get a broad taste of flavors: artichokes, roasted red peppers, pickled eggplant, tiny mozzarella balls.

A beet salad is more of a raddichio salad with beets hidden underneath, and the panzanella salad splits the table. Two of us decide the bread is too heavy on vinegar, our companions love it, and the 10-year-old among us turns her nose up at it. Instead, she wants an arugula pizza - well, hold the arugula. She just wants a proscuitto pie with ricotta, and it's a delicious, designer pizza even a kid could love.

This happens all too often: The most unassuming item on the menu is easily the best. In this case, a meatball panini - rich and hearty with slabs of sliced meatball - trumps the pasta entrees, which are sturdy but still one ingredient shy of being spectacular. We make a mistake when ordering spaghetti alla vodka - we forget to add on the meatballs for an extra $6. Baked lasagna looks and tastes like Grandma's, but we think we might be able to replicate it at home with enough practice.

To hit the sweet spot, Tavolo has made it easy to choose: cherry-citrus biscotti, which is great with a cappuccino, or - what else - gelato. Get ready for a triple scoop, Dorchester.

Tavolo 1918 Dorchester Ave., 617-822-1918, www.tavolopizza.com. Antipasti: $2-$3. Salads: $5-$8. Panini: $7-$9. Pizza: $9-$12. Pasta: $10-$16.

James Reed can be reached at jreed@globe.com.