When a large restaurant can stay in business for almost a quarter of a century, it’s doing something right. The food at Pazzo is contemporary Italian, and it’s not trend-setting cuisine, but it is always good, making use of local and seasonal ingredients to boost the flavor palette. One of the true tests of a good restaurant, for me, is the Caesar salad, and Pazzo’s passes that test with flying colors; this is maybe the best Caesar in Portland. Pazzo excels with its homemade pastas, too, which are great for sharing. The pappardelle “with grandma’s special Sunday meat sauce” (a veal, pork and beef ragu) I had on my last visit was meraviglioso, as was an entrée of slow-cooked creamed spring greens. For dessert, the coconut panna cotta is inspired, and the triple chocolate cheesecake (which is not something you’d ever find in Italy) is rich and wonderful. So don’t pass this one by. Though it looks like a hundred other Italian joints, the service is tip-top and the food and wine list exemplary.