Antica Trattoria at 5654 Lake Murray Boulevard in La Mesa has served Sicilian-rooted Italian cuisine near Lake Murray since opening on February 13, 2001. Executive Chef and owner Francesco Basile, born in Sicily and trained at culinary school in Italy, built the menu around old-world techniques applied to organic and locally sourced ingredients — a farm-to-table Italian model that shares La Mesa's Italian restaurant scene with the modern small-plate format at Limoncello Modern Italian in the Village. Signature dishes include the Calamari e Gamberi, pistachio-crusted Salmone, and Saltimbocca alla Romana, each reflecting the coastal Sicilian pantry Basile grew up cooking from. The wine list stocks approximately fifty Italian and Californian selections with nearly twenty available by the glass, anchoring a wine-bar program that complements the Mediterranean mezze and lamb plates at J-K's Greek Cafe on University Avenue. The Lake Murray Village shopping center location seats guests in an intimate mural-lined dining room with exposed wood-beam ceilings and a bar backed by a floor-to-ceiling wine wall. Prix fixe multi-course dinners during San Diego Restaurant Week feature three-course pairings built around seasonal proteins and house-made pasta cuts.