Pear and arugula salad plays peppery arugula against the sweetness of honey poached pears.

Finally, another Italian restaurant option is available in Central Oregon. With many styles of Italian restaurants in the area, Salute is one of the newest additions, and it’s carving out its place. This “contemporary Italian” restaurant opened just weeks before the pandemic shutdown. After closing down for a time, they reopened in June and seemed to have found their stride.

Taylor Porad owns the restaurant along with his dad, Jeff Porad, and wife Jodi, who are owners of the Brickhouse restaurants in Bend and Redmond. Speaking to Jeff Porad, he told me that he grew up in Seattle, where there was a great Italian restaurant on every corner. After working at the Brickhouse for many years, Taylor Porad wanted to venture out on his own and decided downtown Bend could use an Italian restaurant.

Salute means “health” in Italian but is also what you say as you clink glasses as in “to your health.” Porad says they aim to use healthy, high-quality, fresh ingredients in Salute’s dishes. Chef Sharon Fabiana draws inspiration from her Italian heritage. While a third of the recipes are authentic/traditional, the rest are contemporary. Fabiana says she likes to have fun with the other dishes. Her aim is for a lighter fare that won’t become a heavy lump in the gut. Only a few pasta dishes are made fresh. Most of Salute’s pastas are sourced from a region in Italy famed for the best water in the world, used in producing their pasta. The result is a pasta with a good “mouth feel.” That is, it’s chewy yet soft and flavorful.

While they have been serving a limited menu since their reopening, they are bringing in new booths with plexiglass in the coming weeks. As they have the opportunity to serve more customers, items will be added to the menu. While no specific dishes have been confirmed, the meatballs and lasagna will likely return.

I couldn’t dine at the restaurant because there was no outdoor seating the week I did my review. Nonetheless, I experienced excellent service. The first time I picked up food, a server informed me that I had to wait for my order to be ready. The server said if I wanted to wait in my car, they would bring it out to me curbside. The second visit, the staff was friendly, the food was ready, and she quickly grabbed an add-on dessert.

In all, the food was a simple combination of fresh ingredients. Even the nontraditional dishes created a satisfying Italian food experience. If I had one complaint, it’s that I would have liked fresh, light Parmesan grated atop my meals. For to-go meals, perhaps it could be put in a small side container.

On the first visit to Salute, we started with the pear and arugula salad. Honey poached pears and chopped pistachios lay atop a pile of peppery baby arugula. Pungent Gorgonzola cheese and a light dressing with white balsamic vinegar complemented the sweet pears and rich nuts. This was a smaller portion than I’d expected for $14. Arugula can add a bit too much pepper when used as the sole green in a salad. While I understand the flavors’ statement, a small bed of baby lettuces could have toned down the flavor a tad while making the salad a little bigger.

Salute does exceptionally well with white sauces. The light cream sauce coated al dente fettuccine that was springy with enough body to be chewy. The sauce hinted at flavors of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and subtle garlic without being overdone or heavy. Adding juicy grilled chicken makes a meal of it.

The scampi was one of my favorites dishes. Big juicy prawns were cooked in a delicate balance of white wine, butter, garlic, chunky fresh tomatoes and herbs. All were enhanced with a small mound of thin capellini pasta. A squeeze of lemon balanced the buttery sweet shellfish perfectly.

It’s important to note that the chicken Parmesan is best eaten at the restaurant. The dish is one that does not travel well as it continues to cook in its to-go container. Eating the chicken Parmesan at home is an entirely different experience than eating it as soon as it comes from the kitchen. When I brought it home, the cheese became a hardened block that hid the cheese blend’s nuances and the pleasing Italian herbs.

As all of the other menu items were so tasty, I returned to get this a second time where I opened the container and tasted it as soon as I picked it up. The just-cooked chicken had a layer of gooey cheese and moist breading. Its accompanying spaghetti was nicely al dente. Pomodoro sauce (lighter than a meaty Bolognese) covered both the chicken Parmesan and the spaghetti. It had a fresh tomatoey taste. Still, it was my least favorite menu item.

A small baguette of chewy bread accompanied the meal. It comes with a container of good quality extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping.

On my second trip, I ordered the traditional Caesar salad. It was beautifully delicately balanced. A house Caesar dressing with the perfect amount of garlic and just a breath of anchovies tops crunchy fresh baby romaine lettuce. Small herbed house croutons were sprinkled throughout the salad.

The osso bucco is made from a New Zealand lamb shank that has been braised for four to five hours. It’s finished with a pomegranate Chianti demi and served over creamy, cheesy polenta and a handful of asparagus spears. The tender lamb fell off the bone, and it was a good presentation. For those who love lamb shank, this is a solid choice.

Another highlight of my meals at Salute was the homemade ravioli with meaty Bolognese. The ravioli is house-made daily, and it shows. Porad explained that there’s a big difference in cheeses. High-quality cheeses make the ravioli special (although Chef Fabiana playfully argues that it’s in the technique). It is stuffed with a lovely combination of mascarpone, ricotta, mozzarella and 18-year Parmesano Reggiano. The natural tomato acid of the Bolognese was a perfect balance. Still, I’m sure the spinach alfredo sauce would also be delicious. If there was one thing wrong with it, it’s that there just wasn’t enough.

Dessert was a delicious spin on classic cannoli. Crispy shells were filled with a puree of fresh blueberries whipped up with mascarpone cheese. Fabiana uses mascarpone instead of ricotta, and the result is a filling that is fluffy and light. It was drizzled with a pomegranate balsamic reduction that added depth and bite, then sprinkled with chopped pistachio and fresh blueberries. It was heavenly and not too filling.

While we are far from having an Italian restaurant on every corner, I’m glad that we now have a variety of good choices.