Villetta - sleek new Italian restaurant in Santa Monica/Brentwood!

Racing down 26th St. on the border of Santa Monica and Brentwood, I noticed a chic looking new restaurant in the former Chez Mimi space.  When our dinner plans fell through last Friday night, Napper and I decided to take our chances and drop in as I couldn't remember the name of the aforementioned new spot.

Pulling up to Villetta, the scene was more West Hollywood than Westside.  Blazing tree like heat lamps frame the modern meets cozy enchanted garden outdoor area.  Passing through the garden which is set with tables for dinner, the bar inside is small and crowded and delivers interesting cocktails that taste too good.  We sampled the Cave Woman- a blend of tequilia, agave, kumquat and lavender, as well as the "Dealer's Choice," the specialty cocktail of the evening which was a spicy blood orange concoction with just the right balance of sweet to spicy.

Southern Italy meets Southern California here with Chef Pippa Calland (yes, she's been on the Food Network) in the kitchen turning out seasonal Southern Italian dishes with a menu that for the most part, changes daily.  She is flanked by two brothers from Naples whose specialty is, you guessed it, pizza!

The thin crust pizza did bring us back to Naples and was delicious but could have been a shade warmer.  Also, maybe just get the straight up margherita.  No need to mess with fancy toppings when you have such delectable mozz and tomato sauce.  The artichoke salad with arugala, pine nuts and manchego tasted cleansing and fresh and the Cod dish was certainly good, but maybe not worth the hefty price tag.  Think when we return, will stick to pizza, pastas and salad.  And hopefully they will have restocked their Nutella -- eyeing the Nutella Banana "pizza" for dessert, we were told that they had run out of Nutella.  Sadness for our tastebuds, good news for my bikini bottoms....

The crowd here is definitely older, and couldn't help but think Eater LA's summation of the crowd, "wealthy old investors with 20-something personal trainer wives, the botox and restylane set," was pretty spot on.  Everyone was friendly (the bartender maybe a touch too friendly...) and if you want to escape the scene there are lots of private nooks and even private dining rooms for larger parties.

All in all, we don't have much like Villetta on the Westside and I think it would be worth another visit....