Cortina

1448 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10021, 212-517-2066, www.ristorantecortina.com

We'll confess, we had our first date at Cortina and have been back a few times including to celebrate anniversaries.

The food is good, serviceable Northern Italian served in a very pretty setting. When the weather is nice, try to get the round table by the open windows. It gives you the breeze and feeling of sitting in the outdoor cafe while keeping the 2nd Avenue noise down. But our romantic haze notwithstanding, the service here leaves something to be desired and the owner needs a management class. There only ever seems to be one waitress and although she does well early in the evening, as the place fills it becomes impossible to get her attention. The owner is effusively friendly as long as you're sitting down to a meal. If you're only starting with drinks or perhaps some coffee and cake however, he can be downright rude and doesn't realize that you could enjoy yourself and be back tomorrow for dinner.