Anthony's Martini Bar awaits inside Espo's Trattoria

With four locations, I opted for the Allen Avenue venue to satisfy my martini needs.

At 7 pm on a Thursday, the bar was packed and the restaurant deserted. I nestled up to a table with friends and as our drink order was taken, bread was simultaneously served, making me fall in love immediately.

While the place is called Espo's Trattoria, Anthony's Martini Bar is the name of the lounge side - it's named after the owner's son. You'll get the same drinks from the same bartender if you are on either side and you are able to order off the same menu, although the norm tends to be appetizers and drinks on the lounge side.

Espo's has an extensive food menu. With lunch and dinner specials, take out and catering, all of your Italian needs can be covered here. Order some baked stuffed mushrooms ($7.49) or fried eggplant ($5.99) as an appetizer, then follow with a salad or a pizza (from $6.99 to $12.99). Cheese ravioli will run you $11.99 and the chicken fra diavolo is $15.99. Portions are large, so plan on bringing home a doggie bag.

Need a glass of wine with your Italian dinner? I think you'll find a great selection to meet your desires. Try a glass of house chardonnay, pinot grigio, merlot or cabernet ($5), a glass of Stella Pinot ($6.95) or Francis Ford Coppola ($7.95.) With a wide variety of wines by the bottle, Anthony's and Espo's also carry champagne, port and dessert wines.

On draught, the bar features Bud Light, Stella Artois, Gritty's Seasonal, Allagash, Shipyard and Harpoon IPA. The bottled beer selection includes Budweiser, Coors Light, Miller Lite, Corona, Heineken Light, Michelob Ultra, Mich Light, Moretti and Amstel Light. All bottles and draughts are in the $3-$4 range, excluding their nearly famous $1.50 Bud Light special.

Ohhh, speaking of specials, did you know Anthony's has BOGO (that's "buy one, get one" for those who don't shop much) MARTINIS?! I didn't even know you could do such a thing but turns out - they can! I usually stick to my chocolate creamy martinis, but on this night, I had to try a few different kinds. With that kind of deal, how could I not?

For the sake of research and bringing you, the reader, the most information possible, I tried the following martinis: Zooma, Zooma (coffee, espresso vodka goodness), Espo's Marteani (raspberry vodka, pinot grigio, green tea and lemon), Tiramisu, Chocolate, the Teresatini (grape vodka, riesling and white cranberry juice), and finally their Luck of the Irish (something minty and creamy. It was hard to take notes at that point!) While I may not recall all the ingredients - I do remember all of them being so good and the average price of each drink was $7.50.

Anthony's Martini Bar and Espo's Trattoria is a comfortable place to meet friends, your special someone or a co-worker on your way home and have a drink. You just might find yourself staying right though dinner.