At Bergamot, each bite matters

Pork tenderloin pulls a similar trick, merging Asian, Mexican, and South American flavors. It comes with sweet-and-sour eggplant, glazed with ginger, soy sauce, fish sauce, and more; a mixture of Japanese shishito peppers and cream cheese Pooler says later is inspired by chili con queso; and chicharron, pork belly that’s been scored, marinated, and deep-fried.

More classic is halibut, overcooked and slightly oversalted one night but served with an expertly balanced sauce. Made with halibut fume, cream, and butter, it’s scented with the faint licorice flavor of the herb cicely. The fish comes with sweet baby carrots and potatoes.

A bar at the back of the warm-hued little room features a menu of its own. Chicharron appears there one night, too, in a dish called “bacon and egg,’’ the details of which change frequently. Fried egg and spicy cabbage slaw complement the fatty-crisp pork. Couple this dish with a killer lobster melt ($9 and $10, respectively), and you’ve got some of the better bar food around — at a restaurant you wouldn’t necessarily expect to have a bar menu.

Pastry chef Stacy Mirabello matches Pooler note for note. Desserts change frequently with the seasons. A Meyer lemon pudding cake, accompanied by the unlikely yet completely simpatico pairing of coconut sorbet and toasted quinoa, is gone. But flourless chocolate cake stays, and finally — finally — shows its personality. The chocolate is goosed with a warming dose of guajillo chili. It comes with ice cream made from Left Hand milk stout, apricot caramel, and pretzel sticks — sweet, salty, and spicy.

Attentive even after the meal is over, Bergamot brings you one last bite: a pate de fruit in ever-changing fruit flavors, such as plum or spicy mango.

This is a restaurant that sets out to be good to people, to serve them deliciously and charge them reasonably, to make them feel cared for and comfortable. The food is often playful, the atmosphere relaxed (you can join the staff for Sunday dodgeball in the parking lot). But the hospitality is serious. It all combines to make Bergamot a place you want to eat. Soon. And then again.

Devra First can be reached at dfirst@globe.com.