This isn't because of the food, which is often good and sometimes great. It isn't because of the staff, which is warm and attentive. Perhaps it's because of the neither-here-nor-there location, between the South End and Park Square in the space that was previously Piattini. It's a stone's throw from the T yet out of the loop.
It's certainly not because of the chef. Shingara Singh, known (a la Madonna) as Peppino, used to cook at La Campania in Waltham; now he has his own place with co-owner Wioletta Zywina, and his city-dwelling followers no longer have to make that trek. He was born in India, spent his young adulthood in Germany at an Italian restaurant called Leonardo Da Vinci, then came to the United States. This far-flung trajectory isn't visible in his food: Italy is the only land that lands on your plate or in your wineglass. And on many visits, Peppino himself lands at your table, dropping by to say hello and see how your dinner is. He's a warm presence in the room.
His hospitality is felt again when you delve into the bread, which is far from the pro forma basket found at so many restaurants. Da Vinci's serves as a prelude to the meal. It's a pile of fluffy-chewy focaccia and slices from a crisp-crusted Italian loaf, baked daily at the restaurant and served with olive oil and dip. On a recent night, the olive oil was infused with the green perfume of basil; the dip was a sweet and mellow mash of roasted zucchini, more olive oil, and mint. We ate it all and asked for more.
