La Bottega del Nobile — Restaurant in Unione dei Comuni Valdichiana Senese

Location / atmosphere - 5, service 5, food 5, wines 5+. All the details - below. My wife and I came here for dinner at the beginning of July. We ordered marinated and slightly smoked veal for the starter. The look and taste were perfect. For the main course, we ordered a T-bone steak. It was 1,4 kg, so we took one for two. The meat was so delicious and tender that our initial thoughts that it would be too much for us, dissipated. And we had desserts: Delizia Lemon Mousse and Craquelin Cream Puffs with Berries. And, of course, we were recommended two different dessert wines that were perfect for each of our desserts. The service was excellent from the very first moment we entered this restaurant until the very end. The interior was authentic and pleasant. The very special thing was the wine, specifically the way we were able to taste it. Restau rant has an enoteca where there are wine dispensers installed. We got a card (with 100 Eur on it), and we were able to taste any wine (there were dozens of them!) by inserting the card into any of the wine dispensers and getting small, medium, or larger amounts of wine. Our aim was to taste as many wines as possible, so we decided to go for a medium amount (60 ml). The most outstanding in the wine tasting was Lorenzo, the sommelier of the enoteca, who was always ready to recommend a wine that paired well with our particular food. He was not only recommending but also explaining every single detail of the taste of any wine, its composition, and grape varieties; he was presenting the producer; and he was able to answer any of our questions. We managed to taste very rare wines too. I think that during our dinner we both tasted much more than 10 wines (one card for the wine dispenser was not enough for us😉). Even though we know about the wines, Lorenzo's contribution all that evening was outstanding and helped expand our knowledge about Montepulciano and Tuscany wines even more. Many thanks to Lorenzo, the chef (he came from the kitchen to greet us and other guests!) to all the waiters, and to Davide, who created such a nice place to enjoy the food, the wines, and the whole atmosphere! Thank you all for such a...

La Bottega del Nobile on via di Gracciano nel Corso is in the fine dining category without becoming too fancy or expensive for that matter.

Tuscan dishes are elevated and provide for both mouthwatering and eye catching servings. We took an outdoor table but the indoor space is gorgeous and set at different levels providing for a cozy atmosphere. But La Botteca del Nobile is all about the tastes and these did not disappoint. They take on the Vitello tonnato was modern and exquisite. The Risotto reminded why one may be cautious cooking this dish at home. Just perfect and with a first experience for us: Ash Onion! Can’t explain, must be tried.

Then the highlight for us: The Variazione di Pollo (Coscia su Salsa Puttanesca, Petto su Mais, Aletta su Salsa Barbecue e Misticanza) – three chicken cuts combined, and condiments perfectly chosen and topped with an excellent Puttanesca sauce. This must be the best Chicken serving we have ever had across all of Italy.

Stomachs full, taste buds triumphant, desert was really not called for. But the waiter proudly informed us of their special Tiramisu which he argued was a must…. and oh was he right. The smoothest and best tasting Tiramisu we have ever come across – and we have had a few! Compliments to...

Sometimes restaurants put upfront sophistication over the customer experience. This is one of those places.

In my opinion, the dishes are artificially tailored to look glamorous, the point of serving 4 tortellini over a dish full of fancy syrup. This artefact didn’t hide the truth: the lonely pieces of pasta were undercooked.

Same with deserts, deconstructed traditional dishes is something from the past. I would prefer an actual cannolo siciliano than an interpretation.

I understand and support the high quality cuisine, but there are some thresholds to hold. Good kitchen comes naturally, respecting the product AND customer’s appetite.

On the bright side, I would highlight the quality and variety of wines, the cellar is outstanding, and the always friendly staff, very gentle and warm coming.

A final note: in certain advising apps, the restaurant is announced as vegetarian friendly. Nothing farther from it, all the main courses are hunt meat.

All in all, I don’t want to spoil any potential customer, there is certainly a market for this type of restaurant, and maybe I was the one in the wrong place.

If you want sophistication over food,...