The best Italian restaurants offer many of the same things that any excellent restaurant does — gracious and efficient service, the highest-quality ingredients, well-cooked and presented food — with one crucial exception: They also have to serve the best Italian food, right? Spuntino, a charming and cozy eatery in Highland, does just that, combining old favorites and new ideas in that quintessentially Italian way. Owners Cindhura Reddy (the chef) and her husband, Elliott Strathmann (the general manager), bought the restaurant in 2014 after spending some time as employees; they nail down the classics, such as butternut squash risotto with crispy prosciutto and goat-cheese-filled agnolotti (all of their pastas are homemade), while also offering unexpected and updated takes on other old favorites, including a gussied-up tartare pairing Colorado elk with preserved lemon, ginger and garlic, and a house-smoked lamb sausage sweetened on the side with cranberries. The small but cozy space also manages to feature a remarkable roster of wines, including an "Off-List List," a selection of hard-to-find bottles in a wide price range, all recommended by the staff. Speaking of which, the service here is welcoming and knowledgable, which makes the experience all the more eccellènte.
Readers' choice: Osteria Marco