Caffe Delle Stelle - 395 Hayes at Gough St., SFCA

    Caffe Delle Stelle has been in business for twenty-one years, and you figure it's either good or they're somehow lucky. I think it helps being near the Symphony Hall, and it has a bit of old school charm in its decor and service. When a coupon showed up in my email, I jumped on it. Christine's brother was in town, so we made it a threesome on a Saturday night.
    We opened with the Crespella (14), rosemary and polenta crepes filled with roasted corn, spinach and zucchini and bathed in a basil-infused cream. This was just outstanding, a great blend of flavors, the sauce light enough to not compete with the other ingredients.
   As a pasta course, we chose the Pasticcio (14), as it's called in the online menu. The in-house menu just calls it ziti, with eggplant, tomatoes, capers and smoked mozzarella baked en croute. This sounded fantastic but in reality was a bit bland, needing a spice of some sort to give it a little edge.
    I chose the Cinghiale (17.75) as a main. This is basically wild boar braised in red wine with black olives and tomatoes and served atop grilled polenta. Again, there was something lacking to give this a bit of boldness. The meat was tender and had good flavor on its own, but there was no lasting finish in the mouth. I may have to find a recipe for this and come up with my own satisfying version.
    Christine's brother had the fish of the day, a nice Fillet of Sole (18.50) in a light tomato sauce on a bed of spinach, with mashed potatoes. Sounds like Tadich Grille fare, but it was by far the most appealing of the main courses. Perfectly cooked, tender and flaky, the butter in the sauce giving it a nice richness.
   Christine opted for Pollo (18), chicken breast scaloppini with black figs, pears and Gorgonzola in a red wine sauce. Honestly, it doesn't look all that appealing, does it? We agreed that it sounded good in theory, but the preparation and lack of a bright vegetable to set it off visually marred the intent. Personally, I would just use a boned out breast, cut a pocket in it and stuff with thin slices of the pear, and incorporate the cheese in a light cream sauce with the wine. The figs can be a garnish.
   We couldn't find anything tempting on the dessert menu, which didn't bother anyone because we'd eaten a fair amount of food. With tax, tip and a $28 bottle of wine, it came to $145.00 before the $40 coupon was used. On the new Food-O-Meter (1-5), I'll give it a 3.
   To see the menu, go to:www.dellestelle.com