When you think of Italian food in Boston, images of the homey, quaint North End are likely to pop up in your mind’s eye. What you probably don’t think of is Allston. Allston, with its predominant Asian cuisine, barbeque joints and bars, doesn’t exactly inspire thoughts of fresh basil and olives straight from the old country. But, somewhere in the hodge-podge of what is essentially this college town’s leftovers, you will find Carlo’s, at 131 Brighton Ave., one of the city’s best – not to mention cheapest – Italian restaurants.

From the outside the sign is barely visible, blocked by an unfortunately situated tree. But behind the unassuming facade you will find a quaint, unpretentious Cucina Italiana that prides itself on simple yet well composed dishes that let the food do the talking. Take, for example, one of their namesake dishes, Vitello alla Carlo: veal stuffed with fontina cheese, prosciutto and artichoke hearts in a plum tomato sauce (Did I detect a hint of Sherry? Oh, Carlo, you scoundrel!), with mushrooms and onions. The veal is tender and buttery, as only veal can be, and the flavors of the fontina, prosciutto and artichoke hearts play off one another extremely well. One of my dinner companions ordered tortellini with pesto, and the pesto, now a staple almost anywhere, was creamy yet light and true to its star flavor, basil. For dessert, my other dinner companion, a self-proclaimed tiramisu expert, enjoyed the light yet flavorfully satisfying dessert of his calling. (It garnered a respectable seven on his ratings scale).

For every unique dish here (Salmone Della Casa: salmon stuffed with spinach and fontina cheese, served with asparagus and cherry tomatoes in a saffron sauce), you will find a perennial Italian favorite such as veal parmigiana – and even the most tired dishes are prepared with flair and served with souls intact.

Of course, the restaurant is not without flaws. On a crowded night, you may find yourself seated inches away from the next table (to alleviate this minor qualm, I recommend going with at least three, that way you’ll be granted two tables to stretch out).

Another shortcoming is the basic tomato sauce. Ah, tomato sauce. The simple marinara is a litmus test for any restaurant brazen enough to label itself Italian. And this, sadly, is where Carlo’s belies its famous penne. It’s a decent tomato sauce, don’t get me wrong, but the trouble with making entrees as good as they do here is that anything sub-par will be noticed.

But I digress. Don’t let the mediocre marinara lead you to think that Carlo’s isn’t worth your time. In fact, it’s very much worth your time – and money too. With appetizers like classic antipasto and frutti di mar ranging in price from $5.95 to $12.95, and entrees ranging from $8.95 to $15.95, your wallet won’t take a hit. Scrap those notions that the only good Italian food to be had is in the North End and check out Carlo’s.