"The Heights restaurant checks many standard Houston Italian restaurant boxes: minimal lighting, dark wooden walls, and people leaning over candlelight while sharing a bottle of wine. But the real selling point is the covered patio and the lush garden where you can soak up the sun and live what temporarily feels like a slow life. Split a pizza loaded with spicy, slow-roasted pork with your friends, make a plate of fried oyster mushrooms disappear in record time, or "Lady And The Tramp" some warming cacio e pepe under a giant, shady fig tree. photo credit: Quit Nguyen photo credit: Quit Nguyen photo credit: Quit Nguyen photo credit: Quit Nguyen photo credit: Quit Nguyen Food Rundown photo credit: Quit Nguyen Chicken Wings The wings have a perfect amount of heat from the chile-infused sauce it's covered in. And with the acidity from the lemon drizzled on top, this balanced starter is so good that we don’t mind the inevitable sauce drip. photo credit: Mikah Danae Pizza The expertly assembled ingredient-laden pizzas rotate regularly at Coltivare. Opt for the spicy pork pizza with a sneaky heat from sliced peppers. photo credit: Mikah Danae Wood-Grilled Chicken This is one of the simplest dishes here. But the chicken is juicy with a crispy, charred skin that any BBQ lover would daydream about. The grilled meat also makes for a great smoky complement to one of their seasonal pastas. photo credit: Quit Nguyen Tagliatelle Verde Like many kinds of pasta here, the tagliatelle verde rotates out seasonally. But if it's on the menu, get it. The pasta absorbs the wild boar's rich flavor and has just the right amount of zest from the lemon coating the dish." - Gianni Greene
