Okay, Mario Batali was not there lying on a table, I don't think he was even at the restaurant. But he might as well have been! The food at Lupa was reasonably priced and bursting with flavour. We engorged ourselves on the bread and olive oil before dinner, but then found room for our entrees. My orecchiette (Italian for little ears) was served with pork sausage and fennel. I even sampled my neighbor's pork, a very tender, juicy cut of meat. The restaurant is located in the West Village, so it's small and has a genuine, down-home atmosphere. It was hard to find seats for our whole party, even though we arrived early for a Manhattan dinner (5:30PM). Lupa Osteria Romana, 170 Thompson Street (between Bleeker and Houston), 212.982.5089.