On East Fourth Street, a new eatery has been neatly inserted into a skinny space formerly occupied by a clothing store next to perennially thronged B Bar. With three small tables in back, a couple in front, and a slender bar in the middle, Aroma scarcely seems large enough to be considered a restaurant; even with the kitchen forced into the basement of the small space, there’s very little breathing room when the place is at capacity. When weather permits, a few sidewalk tables are set up, but between the revelers next door, the construction across the way, and the occasional fire trucks shrieking down the narrow street, the effect of sitting outdoors can be somewhat unpeaceful.

Handsome details – rough-hewn wooden tables, evanescent green-on-pale-green leaves painted on the wall, and coyly back lit shelves of wine -make the best of the tiny location’s infelicities. The sign out front – “Kitchen-Winebar” – hints at a culinary modesty to suit the space, but in fact the bounteous dinner menu and enthusiastic staff encourage full-on dining rather than the common sip-and-snack wine-bar model. With 80 or so interesting Italian bottles, wine plays a central role regardless, although chef Chris Daly’s subtle, loosely Italian cooking is attraction enough.

The spring menu leads off with a dramatic array of starters. A frisee salad ($14) enlivens a big pile of the bitter lettuce with a nutty, vinegary dressing, plenty of crunchy pancetta lardoons, a soft poached egg whose runny yolk gives everything a mellow coating, and, hidden underneath, several savory pieces of braised dark duck meat. Despite its intensity, the salad remains balanced and reasonably light.

The chef’s careful touch shows too in a starter of baked stuffed calamari ($14) – two big conical squid bodies filled with anise-tinged rice and separately accompanied by cool purple tangles of chewy tentacles. The mild flavors and crunchy-firm textures meld appealingly. But there are missteps too: Tender round ravioli ($11) filled with burrata, the buttery, mouth-filling mozzarella, have a luscious simplicity that’s clumsily overpowered by the big flavors of a well-intentioned wild mushroom ragu.

The same ragu fares much better in a plate of stracchetti ($21), ragged house-made pasta pieces, where its heartiness fills out the garlicky dish nicely: The layers of pasta, dosed with surprising jolts of cracked black pepper, are tempered and enriched by lots of soft, moistly bursting whole wild mushrooms. Another pasta is even better: black squid-ink garganelli ($25), served with a saffron-scented melange of seared scallops, shrimp, and small mussels and clams, that’s light enough to show off the superior quality of the seafood. If the chef’s notion of al dente is a little on the crunchy side, these pasta dishes are excellent regardless.

Main courses maintain the sense of clean balance that typifies the starters. Chicken bollito misto ($24) is almost plain in its simplicity: two rounds of pale, poached chicken breast. Several small white asparagus spears and a single mild-flavored crab raviolo come alongside, and a bright-pink halved shrimp gives color to the plate. The full-bodied, savory depth of the smooth asparagus vellutata sauce invigorates what might otherwise just seem like a fresh and tasty dietetic platter.

No such austerity afflicts roast veal ($25): Thick slices of rare, beautifully tender shoulder meat come in a light, buttery jus, accompanied by rich, gorgonzola filled gnocchi and a spinach salad dressed with winey black butter. A lamb entree ($27) has a similar lush harmony. It comprises a fatty, grilled rib chop with excellent flavor; a triangle of tender, almost friable neck meat with a crumb coating; and a hot terrine that layers similarly succulent, long-cooked meat with a creamy potato puree. A smattering of house-cured olives and a dab of sweetly intense balsamic vinegar give this dish a vibrant Mediterranean feel.

More than $20 for a plate of pasta, however artisanally fresh-made, seems inflated for this environment, where a three-course early-bird special is only $21; but, to their credit, the anomalously pricey pastas seem to subsidize a wealth of unexpectedly affordable wine. Glasses average $8 and include a striking, fun Gragnano, a sparkling red from Campania ($9). Served chilled, it has a grapey, faintly smoky lightness that makes it compelling far beyond its novelty. An appealingly peachy Gravina white from Botromagno ($8) is another highlight of the long list, as is Colutta’s Friulian cabernet ($10), whose rounded berry flavor suits the menu’s meats nicely. Bottles, priced at $25 to $100, offer a terrific variety; they are categorized by region and grape, and the staff is well-versed in their ins and outs.

Desserts (all $10) suffer a little from Mr. Daly’s spare aesthetic. A mint panna cotta, only lightly sweetened and scantly flavored with mint, tastes mostly of cream; while tasty enough, it’s neither refreshing nor dazzling, and doesn’t quite earn its place on the table. A bruleed lemon tart has more depth and sweetness, with an excellent pastry crust, but still a certain monotony of flavor that makes it an unnecessary appendix to the meal.

The enthusiastic, well-informed staff conveys a genuine sense of commitment, but sometimes their unwavering attention, and the blithe zeal with which they interrupt diners’ conversations to explain the nifty details of a dish, can hamper the intimate mood the cozy restaurant otherwise fosters. Despite this and other correctable miscalibrations, the very good food and wine make Aroma worth a visit; and if the discomforts get ironed out, many more.

Aroma, 36 E. 4th St., 212-375-0100.