Carlo's Cucina Italiana

Remember how Papa Gino’s franchises used to be decorated with cartoonish murals of Italian villagers stomping grapes and carrying baskets of bread on their heads? Well, the spirit of campy '80s Italian restaurants is alive and well at Carlo’s in Allston, where you’ll find big plates of saltimbocca and frutti di mare in a small dining room that appears to have been decorated for International Day in Ms. Williams’ third-grade class. The food at this super casual neighborhood place is pretty standard in a comforting way. If you don’t want pasta, get the veal stuffed with artichoke hearts, prosciutto and fontina.