Delightful Luciano's should draw mobs.

Byline: Bill Cory

COLUMN: DINING REVIEW

We were greeted by the amiable host we recalled from Maxwell Silverman's and quickly saw that Luciano's is an art deco stunner. The focus is on the dazzling bar, with a Tommy gun replica above an antique brass cash register. There's a changing light rainbow above the backbar and below the edge of the bar itself.

The room is snazzy to the nines, with white tiles and great lighting. Underneath a black ceiling are delightful polished fans, movie posters, a photo mural, vintage newspaper front pages and lots of high-end speakers delivering solid jazz stylings. It's a feast for the eye and the ear.

Glass top tables - some tall, some not - each protect a vintage newspaper front page.

We spotted a bottle of wine being served to another table; it was chilled in a massive bowl of ice. The Soup Goddess ordered an Appletini. Martinis don't get much larger, stronger or better, yet the price was a modest $6. More surprises were ahead as we opened the menu.

Every appetizer or salad is $10. Chicken wings, bruschetta, duck legs, pork wings - really - a spinach, hummus and tabuli dip sampler, chicken parmesan sliders, calamari, shrimp and oysters. There are seven salads, including a wedge, Caesar, Cobb, spinach with berries and almonds and a crab boil. I should've asked about that last one.

We tried the duck wings, which were legs, coated and fried and served with a maraschino cherry sauce. They were different, but tasty, though the sauce was halfhearted; more could be done with that duck. We split a huge Cobb salad with plenty of bacon, fine blue cheese and corn. Our server suggested that we try every dressing and each arrived in its own rectangular ramekin on a fitted tray: ranch, Italian, balsamic and blue cheese. That dressing selection helps to keep such a large salad interesting.

The prices of the appetizers were in keeping with the setting, but the entrees were a group of surprises. Chicken breast or Chicago mac & cheese made with bacon and Vermont cheddar each cost $10. Ten other choices cost $15, from meatloaf to a sirloin steak, seared tuna or a petite filet mignon.

Sandwiches and burgers - eight of them - are $10 each, as are two specialty sausage sandwiches. Pizzas are $12; toppings extra.

The Soup Goddess chose the petite filet with Hollandaise ($3 extra) and enjoyed a fine steak with excellent flavor - not always a characteristic of filet mignon. The Hollandaise was a dull letdown, however.

My huge serving of meatloaf was first-rate, topped with tomato sauce and too much for a rational person to eat. Mashed red potatoes were superb, more like creamed potatoes. Milady enjoyed fine creamy potatoes, too, with cheese added. Somehow, neither was heavy.

The accompanying fresh vegetable was perfectly sauteed summer squash - delightful.

Mousse in a waffle cone is the mainstay of the dessert menu; there are chocolate, raspberry, vanilla and tiramisu, each $5. We couldn't resist the lemon mousse, which was a special. It was very fine, supported by a wire bread cone and topped with whipped cream and blueberries. For the same price, I ordered an individual Boston cream pie. This turned out to be a very good cream puff with a rich chocolate topping - but not as much dessert as I'd hoped for. Probably more than I needed. Fine coffee at $2 completed an excellent meal.

Luciano's stunning setting helps make the menu prices a pleasant surprise.

Two other seasonal venues at the restaurant are named after Dillinger and Al Capone. While the theme is Chicago mobsters, the prices belie it. The menu, by the way, says Cotton Club, which was in Harlem. We like the evocative era, but the multiple names do get confusing.

Our dinner for two cost $62 plus beverages, tax and gratuity. On our next visit, we may be tempted to go with just one appetizer and one dessert, and lighten the already very modest check a bit. On the other hand, we may be more tempted by the intriguing choices on the menu.

We expect that Luciano's will catch on and earn a loyal following with excellent food at unexpectedly low prices in a delightful setting.

Luciano's Cotton Club

Union Station, 2 Washington Square, Worcester

* * *-1/2

Hours: Monday-Saturday 4 p.m. 10 p.m.; later on weekends

Phone: [phone]

Parking: New garage; discounted or free

Handicapped access: Good

Credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express

Prices: Low; entrees $ 10 and $ 15

Pluses: Dynamite setting, great jazz background music,

fine food at remarkable entree prices

Minuses: Cherry sauce and Hollandaise

About the Stars

Perfection: * * * *

Very Good: * * *

Good: * *

Below Par: *

Serious Flaws: No stars

Restaurant reviews are the opinions of reviewers based upon at least one visit to the restaurant. The reviewer is accompanied by at least one companion. Recommendations from readers about restaurants they would like to have reviewed are welcome.