Located overlooking one of Athens’ busy streets is the new restaurant La Dolce Vita.

The new addition is in the space above the bar and grill Between the Hedges in the spot that used to be occupied by Gandolfo’s Deli New York Delicatessen.

This quaint Italian bistro has just opened its doors and is ready for the people of Athens to try its delicious and authentic cuisine.

The restaurant has a very relaxing and romantic atmosphere with a view of Broad Street and the Arch from nearly every table.

The owner and chef, who moved to the Classic City from Italy in August comes to each table and talks to his customers about the menu and his whole vision.

He said how in the summer he will open the windows so customers can enjoy their dinner and a nice breeze.

La Dolce Vita offers various starters, including bruschetta ($6.75), Arancia nuda – which is naked orange with extra virgin olive oil ($6.75) – Antipasto misto – which is imported prosciutto – and cheeses and olives ($11.75).

As for the main courses, the menu consists of an assortment of salads, lasagnas, meatballs Carpaccio, Paninis and a trio of incredible Italian desserts.

It was incredibly hard to choose between the many types of lasagna, but Sally got the lasagna vegetariana, which means vegetable lasagna. It comes with radicchio, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, gruviera, parmigiano reggiano and was topped with a creamy bescamella sauce ($9.75).

Her other choices were a lasagna al forno, which is a Bolognese lasagna, and lasagna di tacchino, which is a turkey ragout lasagna, both for $9.75.

The dish looked and smelled very savory but did not have a very complex taste. Rather, it was somewhat bland.

Since Sally went with lasagna, Lauren decided to try the meatballs, known on the menu as Polpette al sug ($9.75).

The meatballs were very tasty, but I would have preferred some pasta also because the sauce was just too good to not have anything to absorb it.

Unfortunately, the new restaurant doesn’t have a stove yet, so they will not offer pasta until they can put one in.

The menu has many other paninis to choose from, most having some variation of tomato mozzarella and some sort of cured ham or beef.

For those trying to save some money but are pretty hungry, the paninis are the way to go because they are filling and most don’t cost more than $8.50.

Also on the menu is crudi and cotti – crudi is raw and cotti is cooked meat. There are many different options for these dishes – some consist of different veggies with a house dressing drizzled on top.

These dishes, which don’t cost more than $13.50, are a little more expensive but are great for those on a high protein diet.

The last choice for an entr�e is Carpaccio.

This is a thin-sliced, extra lean beef with oil, lemon juice and aromi. It can be served raw or cooked.

Our friend Brittany ordered the contadino, which was covered with fresh diced tomato and rucola ($11.75).

For dessert, La Dolce Vita has a case of delicious homemade desserts.

Unfortunately, we were too full to get dessert, but they had tiramisu, profiteroles, and bign� ($5.00), each displayed in a glass case.

They also have different coffee drinks like espresso to finish off a delicious Italian meal.

Overall, the food and service still needed some work, but the atmosphere and experience made for a wonderful evening.