It’s not every day you get to have dinner with Sophia Loren, but here I am dining with one of the greatest female stars of classical Hollywood cinema. While the conversation may be a little one-sided, as the cinematic icon is actually a mural on the restaurant’s floor-to-ceiling brick wall, I thoroughly enjoy eating pizza in her presence.

The mural in question belongs to Basta!, a lively Italian eaterie at The St. Regis Downtown Dubai. The exposed brickwork wall plays into the restaurant’s rustic design: herringbone wood floors, wooden tables with brass and leather dining chairs, naked lightbulbs suspended from the ceiling, an open kitchen with flames licking the bottom of pots and pans, and food served on chopping boards. It’s rustic-modern, a little bit steam-punk and casually sophisticated. It also has an air of familiarity about it, like you’ve stepped into an old neighbourhood favourite.

By day, light pours in from the vast windows, the double-height ceilings flooding the room with views over the terrace to Business Bay and Dubai Canal. At night, it’s all mood-lighting, soothing jazz music, and animated conversations accompanying the slick hustle and bustle of the chefs.

We nibble at over-sized Cerignola olives and rosemary bread while we navigate the menu, which is divided into antipasti, raw and cured meats, wood-fired pizzas, artisanal pastas, grills and mains. If you’re not afraid of carbs, you may well, like us, find it impossible to choose - pasta, pizza, pasta, pizza... We start with tomato bruschetta, with sun-ripened green and red tomatoes and aged Balsamic. The foccacia gives the bite, while the tomatoes add the flavour, with sweetness from the vinegar.

The flames you see flickering in the background are put to work for the wood-fired pizzas. Segueing from beef pepperoni, mushroom and provolone cheese to veal cotto, gorgonzola and sweet onion, the toppings are anything but ordinary. I’m whipped up a vegan cheese-free pizza, with mushrooms, capers and olives, the crispy base with little burnt bits letting the rich tomato, garlic and oregano sauce make a play for the spotlight.

My friend toys between the spicy prawns with gremolata or the seafood risotto, deviating last minute to order the black Angus sirloin. It’s simply presented on a chopping board, with just rocket and balsamic onions as a side-kick, letting nothing detract from the flavour. It’s cooked beautifully, she tells me, her knife slicing straight through the tender meat. It’s a large serving and would be generous enough to share, should you be so kind. We also tuck into roasted broccolini with chilli and olive oil, and a moreish bowl of wood-roasted fingerling potatoes with crispy garlic and lemon dip.

We probably shouldn’t have dessert but... we do. The cannoli with orange and grapefruit marmalade is crunchy, sticky and spoiling, while the Roscioli tiramisu is for die-hard dessert fans, made all the more delicious with crushed biscotti.

We sip wine as we eat, and then slip upstairs for a nightcap in The St. Regis Bar. Sitting above Basta!, it’s deliciously dark and mysterious inside, with starry lights and a mirrored mural ceiling depicting the Arabian sky. Its speakeasy-style is the perfect place for your after-dark whispers and whims, with a drink’s menu featuring wine, champagne and ‘Forgotten Rendezvous Cocktails’. We toast our exit with a ‘Marasi Mary’, a Middle Eastern twist on the hotel brand’s signature Bloody Mary cocktail, with Arabic-blend vodka, clarified watermelon juice and spiced tomato essence. A perfect end to a perfect night.