1101 W. 36th St. Hours: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays to Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursdays to Saturdays. Closed Sundays. Call 889-2602. D'Amici's is the type of place where the people behind the counter know the number of games in the winning streak of the girl's softball team that crowds its handful of tables on a recent summer evening.

It's the kind of place where a guy standing on the street corner can open the door and yell in an order for a pizza slice and someone will yell out and tell him when it's ready. It's right at home nestled on a corner in the middle of Hampden.

The food is not spectacular, but it's competent, serviceable and dependable. This is a full-service carryout, complete with plastic-wrapped fruit cups and pieces of cake in a cold case under the cash registers, a soup or two du jour, and plenty of extra items listed on handwritten signs taped up on the walls.

Pizza is of the fresh dough variety and, while a bit chewy and not full of flavor, tastes just fine. The three sizes -- 10, 12 and 16 inches -- go for $3.75, $4.75 and $6.75 in plain; add 60 cents, 85 cents and $1.25 respectively for each topping.

A cheese steak sub ($3.25) had plenty of meat -- of the bits and pieces variety -- while the essentials of a crab cake ($3.50; lettuce and tomato 20 cents extra) clearly came out of a package in the freezer. The bread was white and bland, but fresh.

Again, no standouts, but nothing to complain about, either. Just the kind of neighborhood place you wouldn't mind stopping by after a softball game.