Lawrenceville is a great Pittsburgh success story. From the crumbling neighborhood of just a few years ago, this Cinderella community has transformed itself into a trendy area of art galleries, antique shops, funky lofts, cafes and some swell places to dine. Lawrenceville's newest star in the dining firmament is the River Moon Cafe. Leave the artsy crowd on Butler Street and drive down 43rd Street towards the Allegheny River. In this block of modest millworkers' houses, you will find the cafe.

Martha Rial, Post-Gazette Owner-chef Josephine LaRoussa-Impola, center, introduces herself to lunchtime diners Mary Ann Labriola, left, of Fox Chapel and Barbara Conroy of Nevillewood, at River Moon Cafe on 43rd Street in Lawrenceville. LaRoussa-Impola regularly greets diners. Click photo for larger image. River Moon Cafe 108 43rd St. Lawrenceville 412-683-4004 Hours: Lunch, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Mondays-Fridays; dinner, 5-9:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays; closed Sundays. Prices: Appetizers, $4.50-$9; entrees, $13-$24; desserts, $6; BYOB. Summary: A casual restaurant with a warm and welcoming environment and a nonconformist menu which blends Asian, Latino, Italian and American ingredients into original combinations. The space is comfortable and inviting and thoroughly unpretentious. Service by young staff is amiable though at times somewhat lacking. No-smoking restaurant. Three steps to door. Free parking in lot behind restaurant. All major credit cards accepted. Reservations recommended.

R iver Moon Cafe is the creation of veteran chef Josephine LaRussa-Impola and her husband, William. LaRoussa-Impola is a woman with a past. She proudly admits to 42 years of experience in restaurant kitchens. It is clear that she is a woman who loves to cook as much as she loves to eat. The potpourri of influences in her kitchen come from Asia, Mexico and the entire Mediterranean basin. Although LaRoussa-Impola was born in Italy, and her earliest cooking experiences were in the kitchen with her father, who was a professional chef, she has peppered her menu with dishes that are more her own invention and a blend of many cultures. This is a lady who loves to mix her food metaphors!

Take, for example, the Tex-Mex Rolls ($6). You won't find them in Texas, or south of the border either. This is really a Chinese egg roll stuffed with a yummy assortment of Tex-Mex ingredients such as chipotle chicken, black beans, corn, peppers, onion, tomato and jack and cheddar cheeses. An order consists of two crisply fried rolls and is served with a spicy raspberry chipotle dipping sauce. Oh, so good! Blue Crab and Corn Fritters ($8) sounded great but in fact were little more than crispy shells of dough with some corn and almost no crab. Stick with the Tex-Mex Rolls.

Soups ($3.50) change daily. Cream of Three Mushrooms is fabulous. This soup reeks of the rich aroma of mushrooms, the creamy base perfectly seasoned. Another memorable soup is the Mediterranean Chowder. This could be described as a cioppino-type soup made from a tomato base with an assortment of fish and finished with a light dose of cream. The cream was totally unexpected in this sort of soup, but from now on I will add some to my own fish stocks at home.

Pasta entrees veer from the purely Italian path. River Moon Penne ($14) is a perfect example. Penne is mixed with chicken breast strips and sweet peppers in a rainbow of colors and sauced with cream spiked with tequila. Pasta Czarina ($17) is fettuccine tossed in a cream sauce seasoned with lemon and vodka and topped with grilled salmon, smoked salmon and a dollop of salmon caviar.

Daily, LaRoussa dreams up pasta specials that are not on the menu but live up to her inventive excellence. For vegetarians there is Wok Seared Noodle Stir Fry ($13). This typical Singapore dish of Chinese egg noodles and fresh vegetables can also be ordered with the addition of chicken ($15) or shrimp ($18). If you order Zuppa di Mare ($21) you will find this Italian classic has undergone a transformation in this kitchen. Your ingenious chef has added cream to the tomato wine reduction which normally envelops the scallop, shrimp, mussels, clams and calamari. Once again, the unexpected cream addition gives a new taste dimension, which is entirely positive.

Although Chicken Josephine ($17) arrived as something different from what the menu promised, it was totally acceptable. The menu described this dish as sauteed boneless chicken breast topped with fresh spinach-garlic souffle. It is in fact a chicken breast topped with creamed spinach. I was intrigued by the souffle aspect, since it would have been entirely original, but the old standby Chicken Florentine was a close substitute. Where else might you find an Italian chef serving up Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura ($18) with a traditional sake dipping sauce? There is also Sesame Crusted Ahi Tuna ($21), which comes with wasabi-flavored mashed potatoes. Great American Steak ($21) is a grilled New York strip topped with caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms. This comes with roasted rosemary potatoes. All entrees are served with house salad and BreadWorks bread.

The lunch menu offers the same appetizers as dinner and a long list of salads ($7.50). The Mediterranean Salad of mixed greens, tomato, Greek olives and feta cheese is tossed in lemon vinaigrette and served with a dish of hummus and warm pita bread. Chopped Cobb Salad is topped with diced ham, turkey, hard boiled egg, bacon and crumbled blue cheese. Firecracker Noodle Salad is a version of Asian chicken salad with Chinese egg noodles and shredded chicken and green onions topped with chopped peanuts and dressed in a spicy sesame sauce. Be gutsy. When asked if you prefer mild seasoning, I suggest you stick to the spicy version. There is a reason they named it firecracker, and it is probably that it's more interesting that way.

The chef loves to make her own desserts, but since she does what is essentially short-order cooking of all the food for this 40-seat restaurant, she has been obliged to bring in desserts from outside sources. From Berry Bavarian to Chocolate Eruption, all are rich and satisfying, and all are $6.

LaRoussa-Impola loves visiting with her guests, and when things slow down enough in the kitchen she will inevitably make her way through the dining room, stopping to chat at each table. On one evening, our conversation led to her singing an Irish ballad and telling a few jokes. We concluded that she could have had a great career on the stage.

There is a warm ambiance at this neighborhood cafe. Bare floors and brightly colored walls give a clean, uncluttered feel to the dining room. Giant photographs of unrecognizable landscapes are the only decor. Well-spaced tables are covered in white cloths. At lunch sunlight streams in, and at dinner the lights are dimmed and the tables are illuminated by candles. This is a BYOB establishment. Corkage is $7.

Tea lovers will find a kindred spirit in LaRoussa-Impola. You can select any of 30 blends of tea made to her specification and brewed in one of her collection of interestingly shaped tea pots.

The River Moon Cafe is a wonderful addition to the eclectic Lawrenceville mix of fun, funk and the untraditional. Let the transformation continue!