Dolce Sapori’s red room is located above Pulcinella in Kensington

It’s Friday night and I’m meeting four girlfriends for dinner at Calgary’s latest darling of Italian cuisine — Dolce Sapori. Located above Pulcinella, the restaurant is owned and operated by the family behind the beloved pizzeria in Kensington’s former Stromboli Inn space.

Arriving early for our 9:30 p.m. reservation (Dolce Sapori is currently only open on Friday and Saturday nights), I find myself in line behind six diners hoping to get a table at Pulcinella. Mildly annoyed, I wait my turn before finally being ushered upstairs.

The room is, uh, red. I love the glittery red tabletops, but I’m not blown away by the inferno of maroon booths and purple drapery. I find myself yearning for the chic minimalism of Pulcinella. Perhaps my disappointment with the décor has something to do with my frustration at being ignored for 10 minutes while sitting at the table. My mild annoyance is turning into burning aggravation.

Eventually, my less-than-enthusiastic server asks for my drink order (no small talk here) with a spiel about mineral versus bottled water. I ask for tap. He seems a little put out. I’m one of those people.

A few moments later, my friends arrive and, rather than greeting our table, he abruptly asks if we want Prosecco. Everyone looks a little flabbergasted. He goes on to explain that Prosecco is a sparkling Italian wine, and at this point I’m ready to explode. His condescension and poor manners are making my skin crawl. I’m rather short with him.

Two of my friends go for the Prosecco and I have a red wine from the Pulcinella wine list. He doesn’t bother to ask my other girlfriend what she’d like.

Trying to put the server out of our minds, we proceed with our food order. We choose one dish from each section of the menu. In what may be his only helpful moment of the night, our server assures us that this will be more than enough food for the five of us, as most dishes serve two to three people.

We begin with prosciutto and pears ($18.95), a dish featuring a mound of beautiful prosciutto, fresh bosc pears and a lovely whipped Gorgonzola. Served with soft, warm breadsticks, the Gorgonzola is wonderfully sharp and works perfectly with the sweetness of the pears and saltiness of the prosciutto.

For our salad course, we have the caprese ($18.95). Served on a long, narrow platter, there is certainly more than enough for the table. One friend notes that it’s the best she’s ever had, and we all agree that the oregano-dusted buffalo mozzarella is fantastic. The tomatoes are a little ripe for our tastes, but overall, it’s a well-executed insalata.

For the pasta course, we try the ravioli stuffed with butternut squash and mascarpone ($24.95). Five enormous medallions of ravioli are placed before us. Drizzled in a sumptuous burnt butter sauce, the pasta pockets are decadent with a solid contrast between the sweetness of the squash and the richness of the butter sauce.

From the entree section, our last dish is a chicken breast platter — a lovely presentation of pancetta-wrapped chicken stuffed with prunes and dried figs and topped with a savoury tomato espresso sauce ($22.95). The sweet yet smoky sauce is tasty, kind of like an Italian version of barbecue sauce. Nestled on a bed of arugula, this chicken is delectable and we savour every bite.

Something to note about dining at Dolce Sapori is that the dishes come out one by one, giving the meal more of a tapas vibe than the family-style experience one might expect.

We finish off with drinks and a vanilla bean panna cotta from the Pulcinella dessert menu ($7.95). Smooth and rich with vanilla flavour, the panna cotta is served with a refreshing berry coulis.

Going over the details of our night, my friends and I all agree on the following points: The food is lovely, the décor is a little garish, and the service is flat-out terrible. Nevertheless, I’ll likely be back for Dolce Sapori’s innovative take on Italian cuisine. I just pray that I never have the same server again.