SAN DIEGO BELLO YOU'LL WANT TO LINGER IN LITTLE ITALY FOR THE SOUNDS, SIGHTS AND SCENTS.

Byline: STORY AND PHOTOS BY ERIC NOLAND Travel Editor

SAN DIEGO -- Late on this Saturday morning, the three older men had commandeered wire-mesh chairs on the sidewalk in front of Pete's Quality Meat and arranged them in a row facing the street, presumably so they could bask in the sun and take in the scene.

Oh, come on, let's be serious: They were girl-watching. They chatted in Italian, laughed a great deal and didn't seem in any hurry to go anywhere.

From the doorway behind them, delectable scents of grilling sausage and frying peppers and onions wafted forth. Right next door, the candy-stripe pole of the barber shop turned slowly; both chairs were occupied.

It might be startling to hear that this scene -- right out of one of the ``Godfather'' movies -- was playing out on a downtown street in San Diego.

A Little Italy district here? In a city generally, if unfairly, known for its white-bread homogeneity?

It's true. And this neighborhood is authentic, as richly ethnic as Boston's North End or New York's Mulberry Street. It has existed since the 1920s, fueled by San Diego's once-robust tuna fishing fleet.

``It was a quaint little community,'' said Danny Moceri, general manager of Filippi's Pizza Grotto, the oldest Italian business in the neighborhood today -- begun by his grandparents as a grocery store in 1950. ``From the bay up, it was all Italians and Portuguese. It was so much like Italy. Everybody came here. Oh, I remember the smells of everyone's cooking as I walked the streets.''

``We knew every household, and all the parents knew who all the kids were,'' added Lou Palestini, a San Diego National Bank manager who also grew up here. ``We used to play basketball at Washington Elementary School after Mass on Sundays, and it was always the same guys.''

The idyll was shattered in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when San Diego's Crosstown Freeway -- today known as Interstate 5 -- was cut south to downtown. It literally cleaved the neighborhood in half, sealing off walking lanes with a massive, elevated concrete thoroughfare. This was followed by a body blow: The tuna-fishing industry went into a period of decline, resulting from the import of inexpensive tuna from Japan, restricted access to Latin American waters and the mandate for dolphin-safe fishing techniques.

Families began moving out. Businesses closed down. And the neighborhood descended into blight.

A rebound began 15 years ago, however. Antique stores and furniture boutiques moved in. Former fisherman's cottages were turned into shops or offices. Restaurants opened and cordoned off part of the sidewalk for outdoor seating. High-rise condo buildings began to sprout -- this being prime real estate on the northern edge of downtown.

Now a revitalized Little Italy is one of the most popular hangouts in the city, whether by day or by night (as a chronic parking crunch will attest).

Much of the neighborhood's appeal derives from its authenticity. This isn't Seaport Village, which was planted wholly and solely for tourists. It isn't the Gaslamp Quarter, which is in a historic part of town, yes, but today has the feel of a theme park for the spring-break crowd.

No, Little Italy is organically grown: The city didn't completely evacuate the neighborhood before redeveloping it. So amid the cafes and art galleries are radiator repair shops, dry cleaners and little grocery stores selling homemade pasta. Where cottages haven't yet been torn down for high-rises, morning glories engulf walls and fences, and citrus trees flourish in the backyards.

The melange of sounds, meanwhile, is nothing short of enchanting: a train whistle, the chimes of Our Lady of the Rosary Church, the clanging bell at a trolley crossing, snippets of Italian spoken by restaurateurs, shopkeepers and strolling residents.

Because the city's terrain slopes here, you can also gaze down upon San Diego Bay from many of the side streets, or from Piazza Basilone, a memorial to war victims who grew up here.

The Little Italy of today is just a sliver of what it once was. It lies along India Street from Ash Street to about Laurel Street, hemmed in on the west by the train tracks, on the east by that infernal I-5. Its northern reaches have emerged as the Art & Design District.

In this clutch of easily walkable blocks, a visitor will find eclectic shopping and will be in no danger whatsoever of going hungry.

Step into Filippi's (1747 India St.) if only to savor the wonderful scents from its grocery store and deli. In the back rooms of the restaurant are red-check tablecloths and Chianti bottles hanging from the ceiling. This is the kind of place that stocks marinara sauce by the drum, and its house-made sausage was found to be very lean and tasty.

For Italian fare that strides beyond the traditional, try Sogno DiVino (1607 India St.) or Buon Appetito (1609 India St.), two bustling trattorias with sidewalk tables. Both have extensive antipasti menus, innovative pasta dishes -- many featuring fresh Pacific seafood -- and extensive wine selections. Sogno DiVino, as its name might hint, pours more than two dozen selections by the glass, from Oregon pinots to super-Tuscans.

In the morning, one of the most popular gathering spots is Caffe Italia (1704 India St.), which serves up espresso and pastries and has tables indoors, out on the sidewalk and in a pleasant interior courtyard.

But lest you think the dining options are monolithic in Little Italy, there is actually quite a cultural mix here.

At the Indigo Grill (1536 India St.), chef Deborah Scott specializes in the tastes of the Pacific Northwest, including blackened salmon and halibut fish tacos on the lunch menu, or roasted whole red snapper and wild blueberry-lacquered rack of lamb on the dinner lineup.

Crudo (1953 India St.) offers a Japanese-inspired menu in a stylish setting. And if you've got a craving for bangers and mash and a Guinness, the Princess Pub & Grille (1665 India St.) stands ready to provide a taste of Old England.

The surprises never cease when you're in search of a bite to eat here. We were intrigued by the menu posted in front of Bud's Louisiana Food Shoppe (2034 Kettner St.), when owner Bud Deslatte pulled to the curb and headed through the front door. ``We're from New Orleans,'' he called out to us. ``This is the real deal. So many places call themselves New Orleans, and it's embarrassin'!''

After lunching on fried oyster po'boys, and red beans and rice with ham hocks and andouille sausage, all washed down with Abita beer, we concluded that authenticity wasn't the least bit in question here.

The shopping in Little Italy, meanwhile, is first-rate and all over the map -- a true browser's dream.

A charming enclave for getting started is the Fir Street Cottages, a row of former homes just off India Street, today painted in such vivid colors as cardinal and mustard, pea green and cobalt blue, bright yellow and purple, brick-red and canary. The cottages house shops carrying children's wear, jewelry and fashion accessories, fine clothing and accessories, and home decor, but our favorite was Che Bella, a jungle of potted plants and garden decorations, displayed down a driveway and into one of the cottage's rear yards.

Architectural Salvage (1971 India St.) is a fascinating place. Owner Elizabeth Scalice has collected all the stuff from old houses that no one would have considered valuable 30 years ago -- windows, doors, heater grates, bathtubs, door knobs, garden gates, fireplaces. At a time when retro rules, all that weathered wood, chipped paint and rusty iron is highly prized. A sign at the register, however, says: ``All sales final. Merchandise is sold as is. Remember, this is old stuff.''

India Street Antiques (2361 India St.) specializes in oak furniture and, incongruously, religious icons. Antiques on Kettner (2400 Kettner St.) presents a time-travel moment for baby boomers, displaying mid-century collectibles such as kitchenware, figurines and children's books.

Mixture (2210 Kettner St.) hopes that you'll step in to peruse its geometric, modernist furniture made from contemporary materials and fabrics -- Dwell magazine come to life -- but you might find yourself just admiring the classic brick warehouse building it occupies, and fantasizing about having a bay-view bedroom in that spacious, open-beam loft.

Disegno Italiano (1605 India St.) carries sleek, stainless-steel Italian kitchen appliances and furnishings. There's also a gleaming Vespa motor scooter that appears plucked from the streets of Rome.

And if you thought to bring an ice chest on your trip to San Diego, you'll want to swing by Assenti's Pasta (2044 India St.) just before heading home. The pasta is made fresh here on a noisy contraption in the back room, and Roberto and Luigi Assenti will not only sell you any one of 44 varieties, but their flimsy brochure will also let you in on some classic sauce recipes -- pancetta e pomodoro, for example.

While strolling in Little Italy, you can't miss the many colorful murals painted on the sides of buildings, some of them dramatized depictions of tuna fishermen at their labors, or wistful memories of the neighborhood -- or the home country.

The streets are also dressed up with lamppost banners. During one recent visit, Italian-American baseball heroes were being celebrated: Joe DiMaggio, Joe Torre, Sal Maglie, Ron Santo. Another time it was figures from the entertainment and political worlds, such as Tony Bennett and Mario Cuomo.

It is easy to linger in San Diego's Little Italy. In fact, it's encouraged. The Little Italy Association decided against benches and instead sets out metal chairs on the sidewalk each morning. ``We want people to move the chairs,'' said Moceri, who is vice-president of the group. ``They can gather them in a circle, move them across the street so the sun doesn't hit you.''

Palestini, who no longer lives in the neighborhood, chuckled when asked about the chairs. ``I took my father down there before he passed away,'' he said. ``He would sit there with all of his friends and complain about how things had changed. They would talk about the fishing, have their wine, sometimes start singing.''

And watch the girls, no doubt. Just as the fellows in front of Pete's were doing today.

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IF YOU GO

WHERE: San Diego's Little Italy neighborhood is at the northern edge of downtown, wedged between the Amtrak tracks on the west and Interstate 5 on the east, roughly from Beech Street on the south to Laurel Street on the north. Its northern reaches double as the Kettner Art & Design District. Most of the businesses -- notably the restaurants and bars -- cluster along India Street.

LODGING: There are two moderately priced options here. The best is La Pensione Hotel, in the heart of the district at India and Date streets. It bills itself as a ``European-style guesthouse,'' which is code for really small rooms. But who wants to languish indoors in San Diego? The hotel's 75 rooms are priced at $80 per night for bookings made by phone or e-mail. Request a room at the rear of the hotel to catch breezes off the harbor. www.lapensionehotel.com; [phone]. The Little Italy Inn, at 505 W. Grape St., has 23 rooms, priced from $79 (for a room with a shared bath) to $199 (two-bedroom suite). Its setting is a bit noisy -- it's in the flight path for Lindbergh Field, and Grape Street is a major feeder route from the airport and waterfront to I-5. The front-desk desk staff here could use some manners training. When I arrived to check in, the clerk greeted me not with a word of welcome but by pointing to me and raising his eyebrows. www.littleitalyinn.com; [phone].

INFORMATION: The Little Italy Association oversees revitalization efforts in the neighborhood. Its Web site, www.littleitalysd.com, lists information about dining, shopping, lodging and special events in the area. The site also has a walking map, or you can find a printed one in tourist-brochure racks throughout the neighborhood. Another handy brochure to look for is the Art & Gallery Guide. The San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau site is www.sdcvb.org.

CAPTION(S):

5 photos, box, map

Photo:

(1 -- 3 -- color) Sidewalk dining, top, attracts visitors to San Diego's Little Italy district, where an identifying neon sign stretches across India Street, above. Murals can be found throughout the neighborhood, including one that celebrates San Diego's once-vital tuna fleet, left.

(4) Among the murals that adorn the walls of San Diego's Little Italy is this one at India and Fir streets, which seems to capture a couple of people-watchers at the window. There is certainly an eclectic parade of humanity in this downtown district.

(5) The days of Little Italy being a community of Italian fishermen lives on in murals, like this one at State Grape streets.

Box:

IF YOU GO (see text)

Map:

San Diego's Little Italy Neighborhood

Gregg Miller/Staff Artist