Bistro Divino features a Northern Italian influence

Consider those the watchwords of Bistro Divino Pizzeria & Wine Bar, 241 W. Charleston Blvd., which opened in May 2007 and offers a menu of Northern Italian, Tuscan-flavored dishes ranging from pizza to pasta to panini.

Bistro Divino is in the Holsum Design Center in what owner Rebecca Prephan calls a “very small, lovely, intimate space.”

The Northern Italian influence can be seen not only in the restaurant’s offerings, but in its ingredients, many of which — prosciutto and the flour used to make pizzas, for example — are imported from Italy.

Also featured are Italian wines, although selections from California and Oregon also are available.

And, in true bistro fashion, Bistro Divino strives to be affordable: Nothing on the menu, Prephan notes, costs more than $15.

Bistro Divino is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m. Fridays (until 10 p.m. on First Fridays).

The restaurant seats 40 indoors and an additional 40 at an outdoor patio. Reservations are not required.

Starters: Bruschetta, $8; bufala, $14; caprese, $10; calamari, $12.

Soups and salads: Minestrone, $6; Arianna salad, $9; Caesar salad, $8; grilled chicken and arugula salad, $15.

Entrees: Quattro formaggi, $15; Pizza Divina, $14; grilled chicken with vegetables, $14; penne a la vodka, $12; poscano panini, $10

Desserts: Tiramisu, $6

Information: 362-8200

By JOHN PRZYBYS