Cube Marketplace & Cafe

Parking: Valet
Catering, Bottle Service, Take Out Cozy, Romantic, Upscale Moderately noisy Outdoor Seating

Remember when hoity toity Cube used to be unassuming Divine Pasta Company, where you could -- for a very reasonable sum -- buy lobster or wild mushroom ravioli by the pound and small plastic containers of sauce to go with it? Aaaah, the good old days. In the spring of 2006, Divine Pasta transformed itself into decidedly more uspcale venue with deep red walls and a lovely, metal-topped cheese bar.

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so perhaps Mario Batali and Nancy Silverton will be flattered by Cube, which seems like its trying to imitate Mozza's menu (example: the pizza with gorgonzola cheese and fingerling potatoes) but doesn't quite have the finesse or precision. That doesn't mean Cube is bad. In fact, the food is generally good, but it's certainly not great. And when you're expected to pay $30 for entrees and $12-18 for pasta dishes, it's hard to get excited about imitative, imperfect cuisine. Especially when terrific Italian food is just down the road. Tip: Avoid the "four cheese" mac 'n cheese. It's only slightly better than Kraft.

Sure, you can sit and have ravioli in zucchini saffron sauce. But the real draw is the shopping: Cube has a great selection of artisan salumi, prosciutto, mortadella and Tuscan grilled ham. Plus, white anchovies, marinated eggplant and other packaged antipasti, a dozen mostardas and Italian cookies.

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