Sam Choy's Diamond Head was known for its Hawai'i Regional Cuisine, served in gracious surroundings and gargantuan portions.

Sergio's Italian Restaurant, which has moved into the third-floor Kapahulu Avenue location that once housed Sam Choy's, retains Sam's traditions of welcoming service and hearty dining.

But rather than Island-influenced dishes, the menu offers a regional tour of Italy, with a strong leaning to the north and therefore light on seafood, heavier on meaty entrees.

For this, explains Sergio's president Gary Manago, Tuscan-born executive chef Alfredo Lee is responsible. Lee, formerly of the highly praised Il Fornaio restaurant group, has been with Sergio's since 2007. He devised the menu along with chef Rodhel Ibay and sous chef Kerwin Sueno, both formerly of Formaggio Grill in Kailua.

Earlier this year, Sergio's moved to Kapahulu from the Hilton Hawaiian Village, leaving in its place a more casual homestyle sister restaurant called Sergio's Italian Table, specializing in family-style dining.

Sergio's portions remain distinctly Sam-size: A single serving of Lee's signature pork chop stuffed with ricotta and herbs took this miniscule eater through dinner and two lunches. Other nods to American tastes include a half-page of pizzas and a wide range of pasta courses served on heaped plates.

Our waiter wasn't kidding when he greeted us with a cheerful, "Hope you brought your appetites!"

The bounty began right away with a free slice of pizza Margherita (cheese pizza; $11 for a whole one) and a basket of house-made bread, which changes daily. We found both unremarkable — the focaccia (offered with butter or olive oil and balsamic vinegar) neither crusty nor flavorful, the pizza too long under the heat lights. We nibbled these, then put our minds, and our saved calories, toward our meals.

The large portions may be one reason for rather steep prices, as much as $49 for an entree (Kobe-style flat meat grilled and finished with 20-year-old balsamic vinegar) and pasta courses on the high side of $15 and up to $27 (for two different Kona cold-water lobster preparations). Wine choices begin at $30, with most around $50. Choices by the glass, especially in reds, are rather sparse.

A $19.50 early-bird dinner (salad, two pasta entrees, dessert, available from 5 to 6 p.m.) offers pocketbook relief and a quick introduction to the menu.

But my girlfriend and I were determined to make the most of our weeknight visit, ordering the antipasto della casa sampler ($13 per person, minimum of two), the panzanella bread salad ($13), a pasta special of pumpkin-stuffed ravioli, the aforementioned pork chop ($29), brick chicken ($26) and tiramisu ($10), and leaving with takeout bags stacked high.

The sampler consisted of prosciutto-wrapped melon, tomato topped with fresh mozzarella, cured meats, bruschetta, thin-sliced roasted eggplant and fried calamari. Of these, the most tempting were the crunchy but not oily, fresh but not fishy, tiny whole calamari. It was served with a fine-textured spicy tomato dip and the garlicky toasts from housemade ciabatta with sweet tomatoes, bitter arugula and herby basil capped with paper-thin shavings of grana padana parmesan. The eggplant was a surprise: not the usual soggy slab but an almost-crisp paper-thin slice topped with herbed tomato.

For me, the standout of the entire meal was the bread salad, a dish I've made before but never this well. Not only is it beautiful in an informal, scattered-on-the-plate kind of way, it's delectable, featuring lettuce, cucumber, thick slices of heirloom tomato, orange wedges, prunes, onions, shaved ricotta salata (a hard, salty ricotta cheese) and toasty cubes of bread topped with crunchy cresses and drizzled with vinaigrette. This is a dish that will bring me back to Sergio's.

The pasta course — miniature tricorn hats stuffed with pumpkin puree and glazed with browned butter — was every bit as gorgeous as the salad. However, the pallid flavor had me reaching for the salt shaker.

Fortunately, both our meat courses were most satisfying. At Sergio's, it was a good sign when the waiter gently warned that the chef would be preparing the pork to medium doneness (that trichinosis thing a couple generations ago still has many unjustifiably fearful of underdone pork). The chop, when it arrived, not only covered nearly the whole of the plate, but was almost fork-tender and exceptionally moist. And the mashed kabocha with nutmeg and spinach that accompanied it had all the flavor the pumpkin pasta ought to have had. Bravo!

My friend's chicken boasted crisp, herb-crusted skin and oozing, lemony juices. With the best will, she couldn't finish it. Somehow, the leftovers "accidentally" came home with me. Bet she was bummed when she found out.

After all this, the only excuse for having dessert was this review, one for which we were grateful when we saw the dramatic tiramisu presentation, a square of liqueur-soaked, cream-filled cake at the center of a fanciful bit of chocolate scrollwork, accented by fresh raspberries and a cookie straw.

You can debate whether, in these parlous times, we really need another semiformal Italian restaurant. Be that as it may, I can recommend Sergio's if you're looking for an Italian experience in American style, particularly a place for a celebratory dinner where everyone in the family will find something to enjoy.