Big-Hearted Italian Aria Trattoria May Look Rustic but Has Refined Tastes by Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana It was a dark, dreary and damp Washington night when we entered Aria Trattoria in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, in the former site of Palomino and then Michael Jordanís restaurant. We ordered a couple of drinks but then had second thoughts about ordering food. It wasnít quite what we expected. Maybe it was the pizza and calzones on the menu or the tables covered with paper that that made us think this wasnít the caliber we were looking for in a restaurant for diplomats, but we decided to stick it out. Ariaís dÈcor was muted in browns and yellows. It was a nice enough atmosphere with the feel of a neighborhood Italian trattoria, complete with a hearth brick oven and neoclassical Italian design. Huge three-foot pillars form a rounded row to separate the bar from the dining area. The floor is decorated in tan marble tiles, and contemporary chandeliers made from huge metal rings with tiny lights hang from the very high ceiling, which was probably more than 15 feet. The focal point of Aria is the center of the restaurant, where the antipasto bar is positioned on a huge table, offering a broad choice of traditional favorites. After 4 p.m., this antipasto table becomes a wine bar. Aria offers a wine program designed by owner Giles Beeker and implemented by Dan Hennessey, who introduces a new flight of wine each week. Each wine flight includes red or white wines and costs $6.50 for three two-ounce tasting pours. The dinner menu offered a selection of traditional Italian dishes along with some lesser-known ones in a rustic Italian style of cooking. Aria opened this past summer and recently brought in a new executive chef, Anthony Chittum, who was formerly at Equinox Restaurant, also in D.C. Chittum recently redesigned the lunch, dinner and dessert menus at Aria, with many dishes inspired by a honeymoon trip to Italy. Chittum spent five years at Equinox as chef de cuisine, working with executive chef and owner Todd Gray. Chittum was ready to take on a kitchen of his own when he was offered the opportunity at Aria. Our exuberant and friendly waiter was quick with the homemade bread plate and drinks, and was always near when you needed him throughout the meal. He made several suggestions but strongly recommended the cannelloni, saying it was "hearty" and shaking his fist in a robust way. He was right. We had a change of heart about Aria when we took the first bite of the roasted mushroom cannelloni ($7.50), which is also available as an entree. The thin, tender pasta wrap was stuffed with chewy wild mushroom, melted ricotta and wine reduction and then topped with sautÈed baby spinach, onion and garlic. The presentation was plain but attractive, just oversize white bowls with the food in the center. The insalata tre colore ($7) was served in a white triangular plate, with a heaping mound of chopped greens, including radicchio, endive, grilled pear pieces and tufts of gorgonzola cheese throughout. We applauded the mozzarella fresco ($7) for daring to use huge chunks of marinated purple onion and red bell pepper to compete with the tender mozzarella, all served on crisp focaccia with baby capers and basil in olive oil. The butternut squash soup ($5) was creamy and nutty with swirls of a nest of crunchy pumpkin seeds and amaretti in the center of the dish. We were won over when we tried the hanger steak ($19), which was deep, dark and rich in color and taste and so tender that it fell apart with your fork. It was grilled brown on the outside but still medium rare on the inside as we had requested, and served with whole balsamic onions and mushroom slices soaked in a thick beef-wine reduction along with small potatoes sliced but still connected by the skin. The merluzzo salmoriglio ($18) was a fine slab of seared cod expertly grilled and seasoned. The semi-crisp charred Romaine and treviso, dressed in a lemon-herb vinaigrette, was a nice contrast to the tender fish. The warm Nutella bread pudding ($6) was baked on top and accompanied with hazelnut ice cream, which melts and blends with the pudding as you eat it, making for a creamy concoction. The baked apple dessert ($5) was a peeled apple cut in half and baked until soft with cranberry compote covered in amaretti for a very satisfying final dish. So when we left satisfied and with a wallet that still had some money in it, we felt that our lesson was this: Donít judge a restaurant by its menu cover, so to speak. Aria Trattoria is located in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center at 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW. The phone number is (202) 312-1250 and the Web site is www.ariatrattoria.com. The kitchen is open for lunch Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dinner is served Monday to Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m. Dress is urban casual. Valet parking is available. Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana are the restaurant reviewers for the Washington Diplomat.