Italian

Veneto Trattoria Italiana (6137 N. Scottsdale Rd., 480/948-9928, www.venetotrattoria.com [1], 5–10 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 4:30–9 p.m. Sun., $18–26) specializes in cuisine from Venice and northern Italy. Dine alfresco on the patio, and start with the spinach salad with warm goat cheese or baccala (cod whipped with cheese spread atop polenta). The house specials like tagliolini (clams, mussels, and shrimp with linguine) and sea bass with a lemon-dijon sauce are only surpassed by the osso buco over saffron risotto. For dessert, splurge and order the affogato, vanilla ice cream with white chocolate chips and a shot of Scotch-flavored espresso.