RESTAURANT REVIEW:

The comfort I have always felt in a mom-and-pop restaurant has usually been incredible, regardless of the quality of the food. There is just something very reassuring about walking into an establishment that isn’t run by a corporation or a faceless team that does little to make your dining experience memorable.

That seems especially true for two types of food, Italian and Chinese, and both give me the same satisfaction most times I visit a place run by a family.

This is true of Spaghetti Bender.

The Italian restaurant has been at its location on West Coast Highway when not a lot else was and has endured development and significant change in the neighborhood.

The reason why, I believe, is the philosophy that was used by Lorenzo and Ailie Pasini when the restaurant was opened in 1969.

Today, daughter Joyce Hoskinson owns the restaurant and is helped by her son, Michael.

The food has largely remained the same and except for a remodel in 1976, so has the décor. Both the inside and the outside look like an Italian house in the country.

There are three dining areas, as well as an outdoor patio that is perfect when the weather is warm. Inside, the walls are adorned with old pictures, plants and paintings.

The tables have red and white checkered tablecloths, and the windows have white lace drapes.

The mood music is a mix of contemporary and classic and includes everything from Frank Sinatra to Norah Jones. It really adds to the comfort of the dining area.

So does the wait staff. Francisco was my waiter, and he greeted me warmly. His attention was sincere and consistent without being smothering, and his knowledge of the menu is strong.

He recommended one of three combinations after I told him I was undecided on what to get as an entrée. It was a good call on his part. I was able to sample three items.

The entrées come either a la carte or as a dinner with a tureen of soup and mixed-green salad. I wasn’t sure I wanted to spend $6 for soup and salad, but wanted to see how good their minestrone is.

It was worth the additional money by itself. It is a rich blend of spice-laden broth with generous portions of noodles, garbanzo beans, celery, pinto beans and zucchini.

The salad is a mix of greens, though I would have rather seen an antipasto, especially with the dressing they serve. Papa Lorenzo’s secret dressing is a creamy Italian-style and is quite good. But I would have liked to have sunk pieces of salami, black olives, cubes of mozzarella cheese and other antipasto items in it.

My appetizer was a bruschetta with spinach and mozzarella on a crusty bread, and it was very good — a perfect way to begin, in anticipation of my entrée.

I ordered the Familia combination of chicken cacciatore, fettuccine Alfredo and gnocchi. The chicken was a bit overcooked, but still flavorful and tender. The sauce is a well-balanced amount of mushrooms and white wine. The Alfredo is the weakest of the three, a bit watery, begging for more cream but easily fixable.

It is easy to see why the gnocchi is the restaurant’s best-known dish. It is incredible.

The perfect cooking time made this potato-pasta dumpling dish perfectly tender and I thought I was eating marshmallows, it was so soft. The marinara sauce that accompanies it is not too sweet and has plenty of bits of meat that add to the taste.

The food may not be perfect at Spaghetti Bender, but there is more than enough to find enjoyable here and the warm, inviting atmosphere will keep patrons coming back.

Address: 6204 W. Coast Hwy., Newport Beach

Phone: (949) 631-8646

Cuisine: Italian

Specialty dish: Gnocchi

Alcohol served: Wine and beer

Dress: Casual

Family friendly: Yes, half-portions of anything on menu

Credit cards accepted: Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover

Rating: ** 1/2

JOHN REGER is the Pilot’s restaurant critic. His reviews run Thursdays.