FOOD and drink absurdities cheer the heart of every reviewer. We've all got a list of favourites: mine include nearly every canapé I've ever eaten, cheese with fruit in it, Bacardi breezers, fish eaters who say they are vegetarians and every attempt made at a VIP room in Manchester.

The colossal condiment delivery systems in Italian restaurants are one absurdity that's been fascinating me recently. There you are with your pizza/pasta staple and the waiter approaches with a phallic pepper pot 18in long.

A brief ritual then follows, in which the waiter asks whether you require black pepper and he does this before you've tasted the food. Why? Did the chef deliberately underdo the seasoning? Are these lengthy engorged cruets supposed to hint at the passion of the Mediterranean?

Hard to say, but it's funny that in Italy they're rarer than road rage-free streets. Indeed, when asked, managers in Italian restaurants over here acknowledge they never use them over there.

Offering black pepper is just something you do when you open an Italian restaurant in Britain and nobody knows why.

Serious

Certainly none of the dining occasions I've enjoyed in Italy have been bothered by the pepper ritual. That Osteria Mauro doesn't bother either somehow indicates that it's more serious about what it does.

Then again the Mauro family behind this venture - hence the name - also run Stock, far and away the best and most authentic Italian in the city centre.

Not that the grand surroundings of the latter outlet, which occupies the former trading hall of the Manchester Stock Exchange, are echoed in the family's latest venture.

Osteria is the dingy Bull's Head pub in pristine Mottram St Andrew transformed into a comfortable but sharp Italian tavern. Outside there's a car park the size of San Marino, pleasant warm weather areas, a bit of brick here, a bit of white-washing there, and wooden details picked out in that indeterminate shade, taupe. Inside, the transformation continues with pale walls, modern lamp fittings, a generous bar, a hole in the floor showing off the wine cellar and an over-indulgence of black and white images of Italy. The dominant feature is the eye-catching orange leather on the seating.

The overall restraint comes as a shock when you learn that Bernard Carroll was the man who came up with the interior. Carroll has previously provided venues in the region with statement features such as the five mile (something like that) yellow-onyx bar at Panacea.

The food at Osteria shares much of the talent and skill displayed in its big city brother. But there's also a more rough and ready element to the grub which is perhaps to be expected. Remember this is an Italian take on the pub, so alongside the finesse heartiness is required, too.

This becomes clear in the four-course Sunday deal - é18.50 for adults, é9.50 for the under-tens. Both attributes shine out from the spectacular antipasto misto starter taken canteen-style. Highlights here included the artichokes, the baby octopus, the sardines and the mozzarella with tomatoes. Interestingly there were even roasted pumpkins cut in slices and enlivened with herbs, which were surprisingly delicious.

Next up was the pasata di verdura, a vegetable broth, shot through with earthy flavours, and given extra edge with garlic croutons. The main of fillets of seabream cooked and placed on bed of spinach with a crust of potatoes was a winner, too.

Daintiest

The slices of potatoes were cut so thin they could have doubled as lenses in spectacles, and provided the daintiest of toppings for the fish. Shame then that balsamic vinegar had been lashed on far too heavily - and there was a little too much spinach. The clumsiest touch was was provided by the stodgy sides of carrots, broccoli and so on, which underlined the link between an osteria and a pub in an unwelcome way.

But then the sun shone and redemption came with the cheeseboard, which was distinguished by a superb Sicilian Parmesan-style cheese. Delight was also expressed elsewhere on the table about the Torta Caprese - chocolate and hazelnut cake and pistachio ice cream.

The cheese was a good way to round off the two-hour meal. With a wine list to make Italian oenophiles swoon, Osteria Mauro is a happy addition to the regional smorgasbord. The only worry is that the marketing people will invent a new genre - Italian gastropubs perhaps?

After all it's what the food tastes like not the label that matters, although given the love of labels in these parts that might not be the easiest of messages to put across.

One thing is for sure, no matter how much strong cheese you eat or espressos you indulge in at Osteria Mauro, your dreams shouldn't be troubled by visions of giant pepper pots ganging up on you.

Osteria Mauro, Mottram St Andrew, Cheshire (01625828111) Open: Mon-Sat 11am-11pm; Sun noon-10.30pm.