It’s been a while since we visited downtown Nonna’s beautiful (and reverberating) dining room across from the main entrance to Hemisfair park. This dinner made the most of their pastas (the showstopper is a mixed-at-table carbonara using a full wheel of Parmesan as the bowl). Two of chef Luca Della Casa’s stellar starters made the meal, the first earthy, thick-cut roasted asparagus with sun-dried tomatoes and peppers plated on house-made creamy ricotta and the second a house green salad with lemon thyme dressing that was simple perfection. We did wish, though, for a bit more of the rich mushroom ragù with our pappardelle and two fillets of branzino (one was sorely over-cooked). An extensive (and expensive) Italian wine menu wraps up the offerings. Many of the dishes, from pizza to pasta, work well for sharing. Most diners report excellent service but either our waiter or the kitchen was an exception that night—all our dishes came out at the same time.