Weezie's Kitchen made me woozy.

No, I didn't have too many glasses of wine -- although its wine list, while small, does have some nice options. Weezie's made me woozy with confusion.

My recent dinner at Carytown's newest outlet for all-American fare was an exercise in extremes -- some memorable, others best forgotten.

Before we begin, you're probably asking, "Who's Weezie?"

When owner Todd Gelsomino decided to open his comfy café in the former home of Limani and Duro, his beloved pug, Weezie, passed away. The restaurant's name is a tribute to his dearly departed, allowing Weezie to "watch over the cash register and all who enter," the back of the menu explains.

This heartfelt explanation didn't help my confusion after I scanned the wide-ranging menu. What does Weezie's want to be? It's open for breakfast, lunch and dinner in addition to late-night hours complete with shot specials.

To Weezie's credit, adding another option to Carytown's growing night life is great for strengthening neighborhood appeal. And its full-service comfort food is a welcome addition where lunchtime sandwich spots are the norm.

But it currently lacks focus. I'm all for variety, but not so much that consistency and reliability suffer.

Weezie's open layout, large tables and bright bar area create a social, easygoing atmosphere great for its transitory clientele. Over the course of our meal, boomers and families were replaced by 20-somethings and barflies.

The dinner menu changes weekly, but appetizers are standard. Hot spinach artichoke dip with lump crab ($8) seemed popular, so we followed the trend. Perhaps our disappointment was the result of a misnomer.

What arrived was not dip but rather abnormally green, garlic-saturated soup topped with congealed Parmesan shavings. After fishing around for some form of texture (read: crab or artichoke), I resorted to eating the accompanying pita points with a fork -- the only way to avoid decorating my jeans with green splotches.

Would actual soup be better? No such luck. The week's special -- carrot dill ($5) -- was so sugary the dill, a rather pungent herb, was barely apparent.

The meatloaf dinner ($15), however, lived up to its popularity. Like many around us, we inhaled the mushroom-gravy-doused mountain of moist meat and creamy mashed potatoes. The gravy was so flavorful perhaps it should replace the spinach dip as an appetizer. I'd dip anything in that stuff.

The meatloaf was a hit, but why weren't the N.Y. strip ($20) and eggplant rollatini ($15) as awe-inspiring? In addition to being cut as thin as flank steak, the strip was ordered medium but arrived close to shoe leather. Not even a generous topping of lightly breaded onion rings could add flavor.

The eggplant was festively presented with a ring of garlic toasts, but we had to request extra marinara to experience anything other than bland. The strange addition of angel hair to the ricotta filling didn't improve matters.

Most entrees come with a choice of two sides. Grilled salmon was accented by a rich mushroom pesto cream ($18) but tarnished by lackluster accompaniments. Squash and onions were excessively oily. The baked sweet potato had no seasoning whatsoever.

But our desserts ($4) hit a new extreme - bliss. Local pastry chef Ryan Matlaga provides Weezie's with its desserts.  

We quickly figured out why the restaurant frequently runs out of peanut butter chocolate chip cheesecake. Packed with huge chocolate chips, the mile-high slice prickled with a hint of peanut-y saltiness.

Strawberry cake was like wedding cake. Flawlessly smooth buttercream icing enveloped airy sponge cake layered with sweet strawberry slices. It was phenomenal.

I want to see Weezie's succeed because Carytown needs a place like this. But if Weezie's hopes to thrive, it needs focus. Next time, I hope to leave woozy with contentment, not confusion.