It's not easy being the old kid in town. Just ask Barolo Grill, Denver's elder regional Italian restaurant. Everybody respects you for surviving a dining scene that tends to chew up and spit out new eateries every week, but you get taken for granted. What's worse, fickle diners lust after the next hot thing. It's Panzano on Monday, Campo de Fiore on Tuesday and Luca D'Italia the rest of the week.

What's the owner of a decade-old institution to do?

In the case of Barolo Grill's Blair Taylor, you inject fresh spark into the old room by changing the menu every season and bringing your veteran staff to northern Italy every summer. And, most critically, by treating your loyal customers like gold.

On any given evening, a large percentage of the tables in his comfortable, warmly decorated dining room are filled with regulars. These folks eat here again and again because they know they will be treated well. During my two visits, Barolo's impeccable but not overbearing servers made me feel like a regular, too.

As for the fare, current chef Brian Laird's new fall menu features some stellar starters.

We were amused by the ''nude'' ravioli ($8) - filling with no pasta clothes. The bright green Swiss chard and ricotta mounds set in light broth with terrific sauteed wild mushrooms and pine nuts thoroughly charmed our palates.

Another don't-miss antipasti is the heaping bowl of black mussels ($9) married to a lick-worthy saffron cream elevated with smoked prosciutto and onion. Foie gras ($15) fans will be impressed by Barolo's buttery poached and caramelized duck liver with brioche and pear.

The house salad ($8.25) with Gorgonzola is nice, but the real winner among the greens is an engaging barley salad ($7.25) with crunchy pancetta and pickled squash cubes in a sweet and sour dressing.

Thankfully, Barolo's pastas are available in side, half and whole orders so you can taste more dishes. That way we could glory in gnocchi ($4.50 side, $14.75 full) with prosciutto, pancetta, cabbage and a light sage cream sauce, and scarf down risotto ($4.50, $15.75) enhanced with chewy rabbit sausage, sweetened with apple and topped with robiola cheese.

If we gave awards for entrees that match the season, Barolo's seared venison loin ($27) would win. The bitefuls of mushrooms, Brussels sprouts and red pearl onions glistened under a rich burgundy-colored sauce. It looked like a Bruegel still life on a plate.

Similarly, the swordfish ($22) with its pancetta butter topping was lovely, but the accompanying roasted beets, scallions and broccoli rabe were a greens-lover's dream.

The signature Barolo duck ($20) is oven-braised until it is fall-apart tender under the crispy skin - a guilty pleasure - with loads of garlic in the side of crispy hash browns.

The dessert menu always includes traditional lighter closers like gelato ($6), sorbet ($6), berries and lemon sorbet ($6) - not to mention biscotti ($1.50) and a cheese plate ($8). If you need a richer treat, stick with chocolate mousse ($7) or blueberry profiteroles ($7).

However, the true star is Barolo's nearly perfect creme brulee ($6). The thin layer of barely sweet silky vanilla custard is crowned with a perfect thin candy coating that tasted exactly like campfire-torched marshmallows with hints of butterscotch and caramel. I still get goosebumps just thinking about it.

You would expect a restaurant named after a wine to do a good job on wine service, but Barolo exceeds all expectations. The wine list boasts outstanding selections and the wine service is overseen by several self-described ''wine dorks.'' When they recommend a wine, it's often from a winery they have visited. They love offering tastes to diners and I saw no sign of upselling or pushing more expensive wines.

In the unremarkable category was vitello tonnato ($7), thin veal slices with a creamy tuna sauce that was really light on flavor. We liked the angel hair pasta with fiery puttanesca sauce ($4.50, $15.59) but the spice completely overpowered the seared tuna on top of it. Blah pork loin ($21) was barely saved by an earthy compendium of artichokes, olives and sun-dried tomato.

Our first visit in late summer produced that same mix of highlights and low moments. We loved the fresh Mediterranean sardines ($9) imbued with just a hint of char and smoke from the wood grill. The grilled asparagus with pork cheeks, egg and truffle oil ($7) was absolutely delicious, as was strozzapreti ($4.50 side, $15 full) with sun-dried tomato, verdant broccoli rabe and toasted pine nuts. The hand-twisted pasta's name has the unfortunate translation of ''strangled priest.''

Our first visit unfortunately also included seared diver scallops ($22) that looked good but were unforgivably rubbery with super-tart, caper-tinged relish that overwhelmed the delicate seafood. The sidekick mashed potatoes were neither creamy nor warm.

Also in the disappointing category was veal saltimbocca ($26.50), a permanent resident of most spaghetti joint menus. Barolo Grill nobly attempted to upscale the dish by using bone-in veal rack chops. While the prosciutto wrapping, sage-pumped sauce and sauteed fingerlings were fine, the chops were way too chewy. There's only so much gnawing I'm willing to do.

Over the course of two, 2-hour-plus dinners, we never felt rushed. When the bill arrives tucked inside an Italian guide book, we felt the experience was well worth the price. I happily recommend the place.

That said, it's also clear that Barolo is no longer the top dog among Denver's upscale Italians. There were too many glitches in too many dishes that really should have been ''wow,'' especially after all these years.

3030 E. 6th Ave.

5:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

303-393-1040

barologrilldenver.com