Last last Friday (March 21, 2008), we made the colossal mistake of trying to dine out in Dupont Circle without a reservation.  A group of our friends, Dan, and I decided that Friday would be the night to watch Godfather I and Godfather II.  We had ambitious plans.  We needed to fortify ourselves with vast quantities of food, and we were prepared to sacrifice our svelte figures for the sake of watching these masterpieces of cinema.  Alas, we did not account for the mass hysteria awaiting us at the restaurants.   Fabulously dressed people were wrestling each other in almost every restaurant, scratching, biting and kicking to attain elusive seats.  We wandered from restaurant to restaurant, not daring to jump into the vicious mob, but hunger finally pushed us to overcome our fears, and we settled at Sette Osteria at the promise of a table within a mere 60 minutes.

Atmosphere:  Sette Osteria is sophisticated and sleek.  Us young folks would probably call it “hip,” and on Friday night it was hippity hoppin’.  Outdoor seating is available when the weather gets warmer, and it’s a great spot to do people watching when you’re in Dupont.  Believe me, there’s some quality people watching to do there.

Service:  We sat patiently for 60 minutes, then another 15 minutes (after sustaining ourselves with a most excellent Molasses cookie from Starbucks across the street), until we could wait no more.  Thanks to Dan, I’ve watched almost every wrestling episode featuring the Rock, and I can do a pretty good People’s Elbow.  I almost had to pull out this illustrious move, but the staff, cowed by the impressively menacing aura emanating from our French History Professor friend, finally gave us a table (and a very nice one at that).  Dear readers, if you ever have to go to Dupont Circle for dinner on a Friday night without a reservation, I highly recommend asking me about our French History Professor friend.  One glance from her was really all it took.  Once we finally got a table, we had no complaints about the service.

Food:  Needless to say, after all that waiting and watching people eating, we were all ravenous.  The item that caught our attention instantly was the Affettati Tipici Italian Specialty Meats plate.  We started drooling.  This gigantic platter of meat contains Prosciutto di Parma, Soppressata, Mortadella and Coppa slices with Italian bread and marinated olives.  How could we possibly resist?  We ordered the platter without further ado, and immediately started gorging ourselves on the salted meats.  Dan, being Russian, is much more of a salted cured meats specialist than I am.  I’m really not that much of a meat eater, but even I stuffed slice after slice in my mouth and thoroughly loved it.   If you’re out with a group of 6 or more friends, this is a delightful appetizer to satisfy the wild beasts within you all.

For the entree, I ordered the Prosciutto e rucola pizza (fresh mozzarella, prosciutto di parma, arugula and shaved grana).  You can add garlic, chili pepper, basil and a couple of other items for free here, so I went ahead and added garlic and chili pepper.  You can really never have enough garlic.  The Prosciutto e rucolo pizza is a particular favorite of mine.  It’s a unique Sette Osteria specialty, and the combination of salty prosciutto to the the slightly bitter and fresh arugula is pure pizza brilliance.  The thin crust is crusty on the outside and perfectly soft on the inside, and aside from Vace pizza (at Cleveland Park), this may be my favorite pizza crust in the DC area.

I hear that the pastas here are pretty good, but the other fancier entrees have never really impressed me.  I would stick to the pizzas here.

Summary:  Sette Osteria has delicious pizza crust and imaginative topping combinations.  A hidden treasure may be the Italian Specialty Meats plate.  I wouldn’t really get other types of entrees here, and I’d be prepared to wait a long while to get a table if you go there on a Friday night.  It’s a fun place to go with a group of friends, and I’d definitely go again.  I’d just make sure I had some snacks in my pockets, just in case the wait is long.

Restaurant Information:

• Website: http://www.setteosteria.com/
• Address: 1666 Connecticut Ave, Washington DC 20009
• Phone: 202-483-3070
• Price Range: Appetizers range from $8 - $12; Pizzas range from $10 - $14; Entrees range from $16 - $20.