Caffe Gazelle is so easy to miss, to overlook, to just not see — even though it’s hidden in (almost) plain sight. It sits just a few feet off the happy chaos of Second Street in the heart of Belmont Shore, with frenzied crowds crawling from sports bar to sports bar just a glance away.

But it’s on narrow, one-way La Verne Avenue, in an almost nondescript bunker of a building, hardly large enough to house a hot dog stand, least of all a much-loved Italian restaurant. But then, there it is, a restaurant that surprises on so many levels — location, size, food and the assured joy of landing a table, which is no easy get, especially since reservations aren’t taken.