When was the last time you tasted a dessert so vibrant, so shockingly alive, that it caused you to laugh out loud with sheer joy? Have you ever tried an appetizer so salty, sweet and oily that it warranted a burst of applause, as if it had just performed a magic trick? I was lucky enough to have both experiences at Tartuca, the sensational new Italian restaurant occupying the former Radar space on North Mississippi Avenue.

Before the chill of fall sets in, you may be drawn to Tartuca’s front and back patios, which are serene and casual—ideal settings for sharing a bottle of red wine and good discussion with friends. But the narrow brick interior, lined with local art, is where you’ll get dinner and a show: Chef Jamie Wilcox is running a bustling machine of an open kitchen, pumping out dishes that are at once iconically Italian and quintessentially Oregon.