Intero Restaurant — Restaurant in Austin

I shared a celebration dinner here last night with three friends and it was a really lovely experience. It was easy to make a reservation and they allowed us to reserve a table in the bar/lounge, where we could take advantage of their all-night happy hour pricing.

We were surprised by how comfortable and spacious our table was, because many places only have small high-tops and uncomfortable chairs in these areas. It was fairly chilly inside when we arrived but either the space or we ourselves warmed up over the first half hour and didn't notice it further. The hostess and waitstaff were friendly and knowledgeable. Our main waiter was very knowledgeable about the menu and the wine list and eager to provide suggestions.

We ordered a bottle of sparkling wine to toast with and one of everything on the happy hour menu to start. The sparkler ended up being a dessert wine, that was delicious, but that we might have saved have saved for later in the meal if it had been marked or commented as such.

The happy hour items were generously portioned and were excellent across the board, the focaccia bread with ricotta and the carrots being our group's favorites. They were spaced out so that we never ran out of table room which was lovely, but there was sometimes a long amount of space between when we would finish a couple of plates and when the next ones would arrive.

We also each an entree per person, and while all were delicious, there was a group consensus that the risotto was far and away the best, while also being over salted. Another person also thought their entree was over salted, but I can't recall which entree they had.

We split an excellent bottle of minerally white wine, and then sampled several glasses of different reds, all of which were fine but none of which were outstanding. We also tried a couple of their cocktails, the Breakfast Club and Courtesy Call. Courtesy Call was outstanding and Breakfast Club was fine after the ice melted a little and mellowed the sharpness of the flavors.

They have an amazing and extensive amaro menu and our waiter let us sample a few before committing. We also sampled their cappuccino (delicious), brown butter cake (very like an olive oil cake), and tawny port (very nice). My friend Lauren ordered a sipping chocolate but it never arrived and when we received our check, the kitchen had already closed, so our waiter took off an additional couple of items to make up for it.

They closed out the meal by bringing us a coffee mocha truffle each, which...

This place is doing things really well. I know that’s not groundbreaking news, but, let’s just say they deserve the accolades they receive.

Here’s a breakdown of what we had:

Snapper crudo - phenomenal, well seasoned, fresh and delicious. Would definitely order this again.

Carpaccio - also delicious and well seasoned, would definitely order again.

Bolognese with gluten free pasta - really good, their house made gluten free pasta is very well done. Their bolognese is a solid 7.5/10.

Wagyu beef shoulder family style w potatoes - delicious. Meat is well done because of the cut but very tender, potatoes are delightful, hollandaise is very nice. Another solid 8/10.

Risotto w quail, cherry and hazelnuts - the only real miss for me. Quail was dry and the flavors just didn’t mesh. Risotto was overcooked and hard to find amidst all of the mess. The combination of the hazelnuts, cherries and the seasoning of the risotto made an unfortunate almost “peanut butter and jelly-esque” dish, Not the best, we left 80% of this dish uneaten. That being said, they are constantly updating their menu so you’re going to have some misses with chefs who are experimenting. For me, this one still needs work.

Artisanal chocolates - we tried the salted caramel, the lemon and they gave us some chair flavored chocolate as well. I liked all three, my wife and daughter liked the chai and the caramel, but didn’t enjoy the lemon. Either way, it’s good quality chocolate and well done.

Panna cotta - delightful, light and delicious. I could have done with a little less of the praline but still great.

Service was great and attentive. Ambiance was quaint. Overall, despite a few minor missteps here and there and the unfortunate quail risotto dish, this place is doing things really well, which is why I gave it 5 stars. Some of the dishes were special enough to make me want to go back and try more of their ever evolving menu. Definitely...

We have eaten at Intero twice since it opened earlier this year, and so look forward to going again! On our first trip, my husband and I sat at a nice table for two in an intimate area of the main restaurant; the second trip we brought friends along and asked to be seated in the more bustling bar area at the front. We thoroughly enjoyed the ambiance and energy of both areas, and love that there are different spots in the restaurant to suit different times and moods.

Everything about the meals both times were wonderful. The house-made ricotta as a light starter will surely become a standard for us as long as it is on the menu, and our small plates and entrees each time were fantastic. I can still see and almost taste the octopus we had as an appetizer one night -- it was the best octopus we had ever eaten, perfectly seasoned and cooked in every way. For entree selections, I particularly love the pasta dishes, which feature home-made, delicate pasta sheets prepared with different sauces that change with the menu. On our most recent trip, I had the pasta with octopus (can't resist the octopus here, I guess, however it is prepared!). My husband tried something different, going with the risotto with rabbit. He was thrilled with this choice as well, both for the perfect preparation of the risotto and a chance to have rabbit, a rare treat to find on menus here in Austin.

For dessert on both visits, we ordered different assortments of the handmade Crave chocolate truffles and barks and truly loved every single bite. The dark chocolate chai truffles and the chocolate toffee bark particularly stand out in my memory. I can't imagine a better way to end a meal than with these lovely treats!

Everything at Intero is done with such a lovely, warm and personal touch - it's a place with a lot of heart and soul infused into all its details and the overall experience. We can't...