Bellevue’s Firenze Ristorante is like a mirror image of its creator.

Founder Salvatore Lembo is a bona fide Italian whose blue-collar roots don’t match his blue-blood tastes.

Likewise, the 17-year-old Firenze restaurant – despite its obscure, middle-class location in the Crossroads Bellevue Mall – serves the kind of food that works in upscale restaurants downtown.

Lembo, a Sicilian by birth, fills his menu with authentic Italian cuisine, sometimes borrowing straight out of his mother’s recipe book.

Most of the ingredients are imported from Italy, right down to the flower and the Mozzarella di Bufala, which is made from the milk of water buffaloes.

Lembo is a charismatic figure who takes pride in working his dining room into a festive atmosphere. European-style merrymaking is common when the restaurant is in high gear, as many of its regulars aren’t far-removed from the old country.

“It gets loud, especially late at night,” Lembo said. “I love that. It means people are having a good time.”

Menu items at Firenze are moderately priced, with all lunch and dinner entrees under $20, appetizers between $5 and $10, and desserts in the $6 range.

Drinks are another story. A bottle of vino can run anywhere from $25 to $4,500.

“You come to my house, it’s even more expensive,” Lembo said.

Firenze’s wine list is heavy on Italian and French labels – with California represented to a lesser degree.

The restaurant’s food menu is just a list of suggestions, as the kitchen staff can whip up just about anything Italian.

“If you know what you like, they know how to make it,” said longtime customer Richard Altig.

Lembo makes olive oil and wine at his second home – a 3-acre estate near Florence – and he’s created a wine label named Tenuta Don Genio after his grandfather.

Lembo has also opened a wine-and-pizza bar called Pizzeria Guido, which is located two doors down from Firenze.

The business is named in honor of Lembo’s father, a heavy-equipment operator. It serves baked pastas and pizzas with rare topping combinations like capers and anchovies.

Lembo is also organizing Washington’s first Miss Italia contest in 2010. His daughter, Brigitte, currently wears the crown of Miss Italia USA. She’ll be competing for the world title on June 27 in Venice.

Firenze serves dinner daily from 5-10:30 p.m. and lunch on weekdays from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.