John G.
Yelp
FYI, the name of this restaurant is now Ristorante Daria, named after the local entrepreneur Daria Capelli who helped put this lovely old walled hill town (back) on the map. Sadly, Daria passed away this past month, way too young. But she's left a great legacy.
Ristorante Daria occupies a cozy but luxurious spot inside the old city walls. Two main dining areas, linked by a walk-through wine cellar. Tastefully decorated, and making for a lovely lovely experience.
The food at Daria is best described as "upscale Tuscan": traditional dishes that have been updated in interesting ways, and well-executed. There are some who would say that Tuscan cuisine is best unadulterated (I would usually be one of those, I admit) but if it's done in harmony with the original dish and doesn't just add gratuitous frou-frou, it can be a real treat. Daria's dishes are somewhere in the middle. Some dishes were really nice; others didn't quite take flight. (We had some of each.)
They have a great winelist.
The wait staff is incredibly professional and knowledgable, although a bit smug and over-polished. They also, somewhat annoyingly, seemed very keen on getting our entire order in before we'd had a chance to really decide, and then brought "il conto" while we were eating our primi! It is unusual in Italy to feel like a higher-end restaurant is focusing on table-turns, so this was a bit off-putting.
So....all in all, we end up being less entranced than we wanted or expected to be. However, they have all the makings of a really great experience if you're hankering after an upscale dinner in a lovely little hill town; perhaps our experience was just a one-off. The place gets busy, so reservations a must.