In the same way that there are very successful theater impresarios there are some restaurateurs in Boston who have the magic touch when it comes to new and super successful restaurants. Steve DiFillipo is Boston's restaurant industry Andrew Lloyd Weber. He has an extraordinarily sure hand when it comes to catching the dining mood of Boston's public. Aided by Eleanor Arpino, Vice President of Operations, Steve has opened this new restaurant at One Charles Street South to rave reviews from restaurant critics and probably even a theater critic or two.

Avila contains all of the essential elements of a modern high-end successful restaurant. The space the restaurant occupies has been architecturally engineered into an attractive dining complex with a bar, lounge seating, dining area, chef's tables, private dining areas and more. It's an attractive and functional space that is easy on the eye and relaxing. The bar is a particularly good space and the open kitchen is so sparkling and clean that it's hard to believe anyone really cooks there, despite the busy chefs and the aromas that emanate from the stoves.

The food concept in this case seems to focus on a menu that features a wide range of different Mediterranean flavors. The dishes consists of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Greek and French offerings, all ultramodern interpretations of classics from each region, created by chefs Rodney Murillo and Paul King.

It's the attention to details that take Avila to a new level. The freshest seafood, all natural Brandt beef, homemade breads and ice creams and a bountiful wine list. The wait staff are on a mission to make you feel at home as you enjoy some of this interesting fare. I was particularly struck by their unpretentious and attentive approach. No doubt the hand of Eleanor and Steve here!

We chose a quiet midweek evening to enjoy our dinner at Avila. The restaurant has a pleasing atmosphere created by the yellow walls and soft brown furnishings. Even early in the evening the bar was busy with folks enjoying either a pre-dinner or after work drink. The bar, stretching off to the left of the main entrance, is an ideal place to enjoy a drink and perhaps an appetizer if you're off to the theater. To the right of the bar is the open kitchen with the chef's tables in front of it and beyond that the large dining area. This is skillfully broken up with the use of pillars and the distribution of the tables to give you a feeling of a smaller and more intimate building than is actually the case.

Both the menu and wine lists are extensive. The good news is that the wait staff seem familiar with the contents and are able to guide you toward something that you would like and a wine to accompany it. The menu items sounded really good. Luckily this is not an artifact of a talented menu writer but rather an accurate description of the food which is delivered when you order a dish.

To the right of this review you can see details of the dishes we tried and our opinions. Suffice it to say that the food was universally outstanding and we were very impressed that such a young restaurant is able to deliver this standard of food with such seeming ease.

I observed many of the diners enjoying dinner alongside us and could hear their appreciation as they tasted and ate their meals. As our meal came to an end, I was filled with the satisfying glow of having enjoyed a good dinner. I was delighted to hear some of my fellow diners expressing similar sentiments.

Avila has a very extensive wine list offering wines by the glass, 1/2 bottle, magnum, and of course, by the bottle. There is a nice choice of about 20 wines by the glass ranging from $8-20. We chose the Kali Hart Chardonnay which we really enjoyed.

Their wine list offers a great selection of Mediterranean wines from Greece, Portugal, Spain, Italy and France, as well as American and Australian labels. You can be sure to find something that will suit your pallet and your pocketbook.