It was a cold, snowy day when four starving and somewhat cranky City Paper employees stumbled into Ernesto's 1521 Café, after being the unfortunate victims of a cab driving way too fast through an enormous slush puddle. Wiping street sludge from our glasses, pants and coats, and probably looking like quite a sorry lot, we were nonetheless welcomed into the charming and cozy restaurant. Ernesto's, previously a combination gallery and restaurant called simply 1521 Café, has been transformed into a minimally decorated, simple room with cream-colored walls hung with delicate lights. Nancy said that the room was "not overdone, not too fancy," while Juliet noted that she "could see the snow falling past the fairy lights around the window. I'm always a sucker for that."

Our waitress went over the day's specials and then quickly gave us a basket of bread and a little pitcher of olive oil. We observed the delicate presentation -- warm bread, adorable pitcher -- for about five seconds, then attacked the bread like a pack of hungry wolves.

After we had demolished a basket (or two) of bread, we were ready to study our menus, which featured a number of appetizers, salads and entrees, plus a list of lunch-only sandwiches. We decided to start with an order of bruschetta ($5), which was, as Nancy put it, "tasty and light," maintaining a balance of crunchy bread and juicy tomatoes (with garlic, basil and olive oil) without becoming overly soggy.

Next up was the salad Ernesto ($7.50), a hearty serving of roasted peppers, artichoke hearts, asiago cheese, olives and pine nuts on mixed greens with a light olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing. Our group was very satisfied with the amount of dressing, no drowning greens here, and the crunch of the pine nuts mixed fabulously with the asiago and the perfectly marinated artichoke hearts. Juliet noted that this could be "a perfect dinner salad," and it worked well as a light appetizer for the group. While we munched on salad, Pat enjoyed a cup of the spinach lentil soup ($3.50).

For her entree, Juliet ordered the special, a large crabcake served on a bed of lettuce with chunks of tomato and slices of lemon ($13.95). She deemed the cake "a delicacy," noting also that it was a very generous portion and that this was "a dish much more suited to a fish lover than when the cake's hidden in a bun."

I ordered linguine with clams in a white wine sauce ($10.95), one of my all-time favorite dishes. This version did not disappoint, with enough clams-in-the-shell to keep me busy for a while, and a delicate sauce on the pasta that necessitated a request for yet another basket of bread for dipping after the pasta had long disappeared. Our waitress was excellent at dropping by at perfect moments to refill a glass or offer more bread, but she never hovered or imposed, even though on such a snowy day we were one of only a few tables in the restaurant.

Nancy, after a brief skirmish with Pat, won out and ordered the chicken breast in a white balsamic vinegar sauce served with broccoli rabe and mashed potatoes ($11.95). Nancy admitted her longstanding hatred of broccoli rabe, saying she usually finds it "bitter and weird-tasting," but said that Ernesto's was "actually OK, which says a lot." She still maintains that she will never be a "broccoli rabe enthusiast," but ground was gained at our meal. She noted that the chicken was "cooked perfectly, juicy but firm, tender but not tough," though she found the balsamic gravy reminded her more of a standard poultry gravy, and that there was slightly too much of it on the plate. The mashed potatoes were "homemade and very creamy."

Pat, having lost the chance to order the chicken entree, chose the Mediterranean chicken sandwich ($8.95), served on bread similar to what we had been gorging ourselves on throughout the meal. Pat noted that "my chicken sandwich was served in the Titanic position, with one end resting flat and the other standing upright. It was a dramatic sight to behold." He also pointed out that his meal seemed the closest in definition and price to traditional "lunch" fare; indeed, our other entrees are also available at dinnertime. In the end, Pat found the chicken to be tender and well-marinated in a "mild, pesto-type dressing," but thought the bread was a bit too tough for proper sandwich-eating. He also enjoyed the roasted potatoes accompanying his sandwich.

For dessert, we tried four options: caramel and vanilla-flavored gelato, chocolate sorbetto, panna cotta and zuppa inglese ($6 each). The gelato was creamy and the caramel scoop was especially flavorful. Nancy loved her chocolate sorbetto, which was surprisingly rich and creamy for a sorbet. I mean, she really loved it: "I feel I can die now that I've had it" were her exact words. The zuppa inglese, a rum-soaked sponge cake layered with cream and nuts, was top-heavy to the point of immediate collapse upon the first touch of the fork, but for those who like rum, a definite taste treat. The panna cotta, cooked cream with sugar and gelatin, was a bit too gooey for some people's taste, but was garnished nicely with fresh raspberries.

All in all, Ernesto's was a welcome respite from the cold, with a cozy atmosphere, good food and fine service, all for reasonable prices.

Our group headed back out into the snow in a much better mood than before, and our meal gave us the mental fortitude to brave whatever slush-puddle corners we encountered on the way home.

1521 Spruce St., 215-546-1521

Lunch: appetizers/salads, $5-$7.50; entrees/ sandwiches, $8-$16. Dinner: appetizers/ salads, $5-$7.50; entrees, $12-$24

Tue.-Sat., 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5-11 p.m.; Sun., 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Not wheelchair accessible. Smoking is not permitted. Reservations accepted. All major credit cards except Discover.