Editorial Datebook Review: Sam & Gabe's Italian Bistro

Restaurant experiences often begin on a high note, then head downhill.

Not so at this independent, family-owned bistro. Here, servers deliver the goods throughout the meal, and do it so remarkably that it's almost a joy to pay the bill.

Space: Unlike many of the area's Italian food venues that are more about faux Tuscan architecture and interior design, Sam and Gabe's is a rare, refined respite.

This place is so favorite-chair comfortable that I found myself not searching the room for comment-worthy details as I normally would, but instead just basking in it.

Yes, I finally noticed that the walls were faux-painted blue, that they were graced by photographs of Florence, and that the tabletops were crisp white canvasses upon which candlelight flickered. That the flatware was spotless and the stemware shone. That booth seating was so generously spaced that even chubsters like me could breathe and dine at the same time.

But mostly, I felt filled with a sense of well-being.

Service: On each occasion, as superior as the last.

I especially appreciate female servers - those truly expert service professionals who earn a living not by being perky, flirtatious and cute, but by being flat out good at what they do.

The restaurant communities of New York and Chicago may have large populations of these pros, but in Des Moines, they are rare. Luckily, at least two of them work at Sam and Gabe's.
Impeccably groomed, savvy and sophisticated, these servers scored on all counts, and get bonus points for knowing how much our table of aging hippies would enjoy Jerry Garcia Zinfandel.

Menu: Sam and Gabe's menu, though not overly ambitious, is pleasingly populated with rich and self-indulgent specialties from the top of Italy's boot.

Although many dishes fell short of perfection only because their flavors were masked by the kitchen's heavy-handedness with salt, others sweetened our overall perception. Pancetta-wrapped Shrimp - top-notch white gulf shrimp, plump and toothsome, glazed with a piquant coat of spiced tomato - were sublime and came in a portion ample enough to share. An exquisite Stuffed Breast of Duck arrived perfectly pink. Veal - always a surprise on Iowa menus - prepared Saltimbocca style, won raves with its silky coat of Madiera-enhanced veal demiglace.

But - perhaps adhering to the restaurant adage that guests will most remember the thing they eat last - Sam and Gabe's desserts are exemplary. With a smidge of guilt, I admit I have tried them all and deem them, as a whole, to be the city's best. I would gladly wash the restaurant's dishes for a week in exchange for the recipe for the incredible Lemon Mousse Cheesecake.

Bottom line: To truly appreciate this solid Italian restaurant, stay for dessert.