THE GALLIVANTING GOURMET: They’re serious about their Italian

As Mirabeau bites the dust, Stella’s rises from the ashes. In that choice ocean-view spot in Monarch Bay Plaza, a new Italian restaurant and lounge makes its debut. All dressed up with new booths, golden draperies and two large portraits of someone who actually may be the eponymous Stella. They also have added a wood-burning pizza oven. The outdoor terrace has been refurbished with banquettes along the walls and a second bar.

Still remaining are the open kitchen, the long bar with comfortable upholstered stools where you may eat as well as drink, and the large fireplace on the terrace. Live background music begins almost every evening at 6 p.m.

Stella’s full name is Stella’s Serious Italian, and unlike all those other flighty, shallow Italian restaurants in town, they say they are committed to authenticity, insisting on classic Neapolitan cuisine prepared by chef Abel Gonzalez and their pizza master (a “pizzaiolo”) Joseph Morano.

Yes, there is minestrone soup but also something called zuppa d’cippolle, looking a lot like French onion soup to us but topped with aged provolone instead of gruyere. Yes, there is a salad caprese, but there is also caprino di raspberry with organic mixed greens, goat cheese, fresh raspberries, toasted almonds and raspberry vinaigrette.

When it comes to pizza, however, there is no question “” this is the real deal, with a thin, lightly charred crust from the wood-burning oven, topped with excellent fresh tomato sauce and house-made mozzarella. This is the traditional Neapolitan pizza margherita: simple, lightly sauced, with sliced tomatoes and dollops of fresh, creamy mozzarella baked on top.

Pizza Bianca is without sauce but does have mozzarella, Reggiano and ricotta di bufala cheeses and is brushed with olive oil and garlic.

There is a mushroom pizza and a cheese-less marinara. Then, there is pizza Astarita, which has authentic Italian ingredients but is definitely an American-style pizza with sweet sausage, salami and homemade meatballs.

It took us a long time to decide on our primo platti (first course) because there are 14 to choose from, and they all sounded delicious. Our very patient, pleasant and helpful waiter apologized when we finally made our decision to order crab cakes because they were out of them. He explained that the chef couldn’t get the quality of crab he wanted.

We ordered the rapini portabello, expecting a stuffed mushroom. We were surprised but delighted with this almost soup-like dish with slices of earthy mushroom and spears of garlicky broccoli rabe in a light, slightly creamy broth that was truly scrumptious. We requested spoons so we could get every last drop of this unusual starter.

The steamed clams were very sweet and tender in a white wine broth that was not dissimilar to the one with the mushrooms. However, this sauce was much too salty.

We also shared a mista, the house salad, sadly drowned in good balsamic vinaigrette. Overdressed salads are one of our pet peeves. Consider ordering the dressing on the side. Our neighbors at the next table were sharing a gorgeous antipasto platter of salami, cheeses, grilled vegetables, olives and pepperoncinis. Of course, there is calamari fritti served with two sauces, spicy marinara and citrus aioli, and mussels prepared in tomato broth. The rollatini of eggplant is stuffed with ricotta, mozzarella and sun-dried tomatoes and topped with marinara. Then there is that classic Neapolitan dish: sesame-crusted ahi with ginger cucumber slaw.

“Serious Italian Pasta” lists capellini aglio olio, a simple preparation that can be divine with just garlic, parsley, olive oil and Parmesan Reggiano, or you can get capellini with jumbo prawns in white wine sauce. Penne con sarge has sliced chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, tarragon and cream (a recipe requested from them by Bon Apétit).

Our fettuccine andolini featured shrimp, scallops, clams, mussels and lobster in a tasty Grey Goose tomato vodka sauce with a touch of cream. All the seafood was good and very fresh, but we couldn’t find any lobster. The scallop was particularly tender and sweet, but unfortunately, there was only one. In fact, the whole portion of seafood was modest and the pasta, while not overcooked, was not al dente enough for a “serious” Italian restaurant.

Really good pasta should have a bit of “tooth,” as does their penne alla Joe’s nana with breaded eggplant, ricotta, tomatoes, garlic and marinara.

The breading was light, and the very good marinara had a lot of garlic and a little spicy kick.

Classic veal piccata is one test of an Italian kitchen and this version was quite delicious. Although the veal was apparently not milk-fed (which would make the meat white), it was actually juicier and more flavorful than white veal often is.

The medallions were stacked on a little mound of very smooth potato puree and bathed in a buttery white wine sauce, perked up with lemon juice and capers. It was a bit thick, more like gravy but delicious. The vegetable accompaniment consisted of sautéed zucchini, yellow squash and red bell peppers.

There are only three desserts to choose from: chocolate soufflé (described by our server as “like a chocolate sponge cake”), that old chestnut “” tiramisu, and a favorite of ours from early days in New York City, cannoli.

It is a crisp, fried pastry dough, rolled when hot and then filled right before serving with a vanilla flavored ricotta, sometimes mixed with mascarpone and/or chocolate bits or candied dried fruits. Stella’s version might be more appropriately called a cannulicci, because it is not as big around as the average cannoli. It is more the size of a cigar, thus changing the ratio of filling to crust. Unfortunately, the crust was so hard that it was impossible to eat with a fork. The filling, flecked with chocolate was quite light and authentic tasting and we wished there was more of it.

We would call Stella’s a “semi-serious” Italian restaurant and a pleasant addition to the South Coast dining scene.

ELLE HARROW and TERRY MARKOWITZ owned a la Carte for 20 years and can be reached at [email protected].