When the former owners of piccola Roma, Annapolis’ beloved Main Street Italian restaurant, declared bankruptcy last December, Maureen Lucas, the building’s owner, was in a quandary. Finding someone to reopen the restaurant in this economy was becoming a challenge, yet she needed the income and didn’t want the storefront to sit empty. Lucas’ solution was to reopen Piccola Roma herself, and in August, she became the third owner of this classic restaurant.

Under Lucas’ hand, Piccola Roma has become an example of how the more things change, the more they stay the same. Chefs (and brothers) Jose and Ulices Ayala remain in charge of the kitchen, as they have been for nearly 20 years. The Giolitti family, the restaurant’s original owners, now own a deli in town and provide the restaurant with bread.

Lucas has added a few dishes and lowered prices and freshened up the dining room, which now boasts punchy persimmon upholstery and creamier yellow walls than before. But, all in all, it’s the same cozy, slightly old-fashioned dining room, featuring the equivalent of Italian comfort food: bruschetta and grilled calamari, penne a la Bolognese, and spaghetti carbonara (the latter by request), and lots of seafood-spiked pastas, albeit with a revamped, all-Italian wine list.

Lucas also has added carpaccio, sautéed mussels, and crabmeat-stuffed mushrooms to the antipasti menu, and while the mushrooms aren’t particularly Italian, they are particularly tasty. Stuffed with decent lumps of crab, little crumb, and a touch of garlic, they are reminiscent of something you’d find on the appetizer plate at a gourmet hostess’ party. Another appetizer, grilled radicchio, looked a little tired (grilling it chars the limp leaves), but its flavor was nicely bitter and a fine match for the salty, lumpy gorgonzola sauce that accompanied it. 

We passed on Piccola Roma’s pasta choices and instead debated among the grilled beef fillet stuffed with prosciutto, spinach, and goat cheese, the veal scaloppine, and a sautéed chicken with prosciutto and mozzarella before deciding on the pesce di giorno al cartoccio, the catch of the day. In this case, the fish was halibut, cooked in parchment with mussels, scallops, tomatoes, olives, and herbs. It’s a simple dish, fresh tasting and uncomplicated but perhaps slightly overpriced at $32, given its modest size. Lobster ravioli stuffed with the shellfish and mascarpone cheese, on the other hand, was rich and unctuous in its vodka cream sauce.

The night we dined, desserts included cheesecake and apple tart, but when I asked if it was possible to order just one or two of the biscotti that decorated the dessert tray to go with my espresso, I was warmly assured it was no problem. This was representative of the restaurant’s service—courtly and professional. When I asked about an unfamiliar wine, our server insisted on bringing a sample to the table. And although this same server seemed to be taking care of the entire dining room, we never felt rushed or neglected.

Piccola Roma is not going to impress with innovation or modern takes on traditional food. It still borders on being expensive, and nothing will bowl you over with originality, but it’s comfortable and old school in the best sense, and there’s not a thing wrong with that. Welcome back to Main Street.

Mary K. Zajac writes from Baltimore.