Ron's Cafe: Paint the Town Red

is tucked in a small strip of stores in Havertown right behind a Starbucks. There isn't a flashy sign and you could easily miss it when you drive by.

We headed there for dinner the other night and took advantage of the BYOB policy. What struck me was that they open the bottle for you but don't pour for you, the bottle was returned to us with the cork stuffed back in. No problem, we poured extra large glasses for ourselves.

The fare at Ron's is what I consider old school Italian, red sauce dominates the scene and there are plenty of your favorites like chicken parmesan, veal marsala, shrimp scampi, antipasto appetizers and more.

We ordered the crab cocktail, a salad and mussels marinara to start. The crab cocktail was abundant and the meat sweet and succulent. The salad was a better than average version with olives, croutons, tomatoes, cucumbers and onions and went nicely with the oil and vinegar.

The mussels marinara arrived in a dramatic fashion in a mini cauldron. The server lifted off the lid and steam came wafting out. The mussels were tender, well flavored and highly enjoyable.

For our main courses we had the linguini with clams, the crab linguini and the gnocchi (we do love our seafood). Many of the seafood pasta dishes come with the option of red or white sauce but we all opted for red. The linguini with clams was pretty good although the clams were not fresh but rather chopped clams from a can.

The lump crab linguini featured huge chunks of meat throughout the dish—more than I have ever seen in fact. It was a delight to eat and the sweet crab paired well with the tomato sauce. The gnocchi were tasty and the portion was also quite generous. I wish they could have been a little bit lighter though ... The tomato sauce here is milder than in other restaurants. It is not dominated by garlic or herbs but showcases the tomatoes more.

For our dining coda we looked to the handwritten dessert board and chose chocolate hazelnut gelato and tiramisu. The gelato was heavenly—so rich, creamy and delicious. For me, chocolate and hazelnut is a match made in Heaven, be it in gelato, truffle, cake or chocolate bar form. The tiramisu seemed to be a hybrid of tiramisu and Italian rum cake which was a bit odd. Regardless we enjoyed our desserts with coffee as we completed our meal.

The service is attentive, friendly and energetic. We didn't have to wait for our table, our water glasses were always filled, and our requests were met quickly. The atmosphere is laid back and unassuming.

Ron's is an ideal place to enjoy a hearty plate of pasta and a glass of your favorite wine with friends after a long work week. For an hour or two you can escape the stress of life, focus on real, honest food with no gimmicks, laugh heartily without shame and indulge in dessert with no judgment. To paraphrase Mr. Sinatra, it's my kind of place.