Since pizza stirs so much passion among diners, here's the first thing: The pie at Buonarroti Ristorante is first-rate. The thin crust was smoky and blistered crisp in an almondwood-burning pizza oven, and topped with fresh and plentiful ingredients. Our Tuscan pie was studded with pepperoni, mushrooms and tangy Kalamata olive halves, not those tasteless bits of black olives from a can so overused at chain pizzerias.

A week before lunch pal Anne and I split that pizza, lunch pals Katie and Chris and I met to taste more serious offerings at the 3-month-old restaurant. After ordering, we walked around the high-ceilinged room and appreciated the murals and stonework, the textured walls and wall sconces that made us laugh out loud.

Soon, the dishes arrived: beer- battered fried cheese ravioli with tomato sauce and ranch dressing for dipping ($8); a panino of imported prosciutto, tomato and mozzarella cheese on a pressed and grilled sourdough baguette, with a cup of minestrone soup ($12); a wonderful lasagna, rich with Italian sausage and gooey mozzarella, finished in the wood-burning oven ($12); a daily special of osso bucco (veal shanks) with risotto and sautéed veggies ($16); and a tiramisu that redefined that classic dessert ($7).

Additionally, the lunch menu lists a half-dozen pasta dishes (some of the pasta is made from scratch, as in the marvelous linguini with clams), chicken and veal, panini, pizzas, salads and appetizers (the panko-coated calamari with lemon-basil aioli explodes with flavor).

"These ravioli aren't super-heavy like others I've had," Chris said. "They're fluffy." They were tasty morsels, yes, but we agreed an addition of something sharply flavored would lend a needed spark (even though there were shavings of Parmigiano- Reggiano on top, and the red dipping sauce was remarkable).

The minestrone was one of the better versions we've tasted. As Katie put it, "I like the crisp vegetables and the al dente pasta, and it's not too tomato-y."

Our panino was appropriately crunchy, with the salty tang of the Parma ham not shy about announcing itself.

The gratifyingly bold lasagna had such balance that each forkful offered a slighlty new taste and texture. It was the best version I've had in Sacramento in recent memory.

But it was the osso bucco that took the starring role. The fork-tender meat possessed a rarely found depth of flavor that seemed bottomless. We even dug out the marrow from the bone and relished it. Then, to create the ultimate comfort dish, we spooned the sauce over the risotto (creamy Arborio rice with Parmigiano-Reggiano, roasted red peppers and onion) and alternated with bites of veal. Somebody stop me!

Later, I phoned owner Daniel Alcantaro to inquire.

"I braise (the veal shanks) with vegetables (including carrots and celery) and slowly cook them in red wine and our red sauce," he said.

About that red sauce, which shows up throughout the menu: "My mother taught it to me, and her mother taught it to her," Alcantaro said. The ingredients are a family secret, of course, but "it's a vegetarian sauce with garlic, red wine and a lot of other things."

For purists, a bowl of that sauce with a basket of Buonarotti's warm bread and house-made garlic-infused whipped butter would make a meal. Really.

Last Friday, this column reviewed the Three Monkeys restaurant on the K Street Mall. Unbeknown to me, a sign went up sometime after our visit and before we published the review. The sign explained the Monkeys is "temporarily closed" due to "maintenance" issues. Our phone calls to get more information have not been returned.