Nostro Restobar and Lounge — Restaurant in City of Utica

Nostro is in the top 5 places to eat in Utica, and for numerous reasons. It was once a bank that has since been turned into a restaurant, but has kept much of the beautiful architecture and charm of its previous occupation. It has a large seating area, bar, and lounge area with very high ceilings, free of excess walls and constraints, and is furnished with a blend of mid-century modern designs and contemporary accents. It’s quite versatile for a restaurant and it makes for a very nice atmosphere to grab a drink with a friend or settle down for an enjoyable meal with family.

I have tasted most of the dishes at this restaurant and have liked all of it, and absolutely loved a couple specific ones which I tend to order often. Those loved dishes include: calamari, white truffle garlic bread, Sunday salad, Burro E Oro, pistachio gelato (seasonal), beef tenderloin, and Graminga Alla Salsiccia. I did once order a pasta dish that was quite too salty for my taste - Rigatoni Al Tre Funghi - but it was still delicious and I was still able to finish it.

Their service is great - I have never waited more than 10-15 minutes to be seated on busy nights. They have high table top seating, bar seating, lounge seating, a more private area seating option and standard table seating. This is one thing that is quite appealing about this restaurant. You can easily go out to dinner here with a group of your coworkers, or a choose a more private area to have a 1-1 date night. The lighting is dimmer and moody and that is something I enjoy as well, as I do not enjoy overly bright and overstimulating lighting in restaurants. Their utensils, plates, napkins and cups are always very clean and they take extra care to make sure they are. The waiters, waitresses and hostesses are very friendly and kind and have no problems answering questions or giving recommendations.

Nostro leans toward the pricier end. If you order a drink, an appetizer (to share) and a simple entree, you will be paying about $50ish for yourself. If you order a pricier protein entree, an app, dessert, and a drink, expect to pay closer to $100. Again, it really depends on your selection and whether you choose to split dishes with the rest of your company.

Upon its grand opening, Nostro has been famous for its “Arsenale” which was an ordering option where you were able to taste a variety of items on the menu, on small, shareable plates, for 1 standard price: appetizers, salads, entrees, pastas and desserts, for the price of ~$65. Since they have now taken that option off of their menu, I have not been too tempted to visit Nostro frequently, as I am someone who enjoys trying several small dishes and share them with whomever I am eating with, rather than purchase 1 entree and split an appetizer for the same price (or more!). I do believe it was well worth the price and it is a real shame and disappointment that it was taken off the menu! I hope they bring The Arsenale back soon!!

I also wish they were open on Sundays, as this is a day most people tend to be free to socialize over food or drinks and Nostro would be an ideal spot for a nice Sunday evening.

Overall, the atmosphere, great service and diverting food selection, makes Nostro a...

My wife and I dined here for the first time recently. Upon arriving we were seated promptly. Our waitress came to introduce herself, asked if we had been before and gave us the run down of the menu. She mentioned their tasting menu, the Arsenale, which consisted of a four course shared dish meal. It’s $65 a person and everyone at the table needs to participate in order to take part. We informed our server that my wife was a vegetarian and inquired if this tasting menu could be customized to meet those needs. We were told it could be. We decided to order this and some drinks. We were brought some bread and eventually our drinks, which took what felt like quite a bit of time. Our first course was an arugula salad, veal meatballs, and a plate of prosciutto and cheese. As the meatballs and prosciutto were being placed on the table the server said to my wife “these aren’t for you”. Given the conversation we had with our waitress we thought this was strange but figured maybe the with the salad - we let it go. The next course comes out and it’s a branzino with three sides. In between the first and second course, our waitress came back to our table to ask my wife if she ate fish - and she said no. So I magine our shock when a whole fish is brought to the table. The third course was dropped on our table a considerable amount after we had finished the second course. It was a pasta dish but the sever who dropped it off did not explain exactly what it was to us. Fourth course was a dessert.

Upon speaking with their customer service reps, we were basically told that we should not have ordered this testing menu - ‘Our Arsenale is meant to be customized to all dietary restrictions and allergies, however, we do not serve any dish that is not already included on our regular  menu.  Our regular menu, while it does include some vegetarian options, is not designed around any specific narrow boundaries of dining.’ A shocking response considering we discussed the dietary needs with the waitress prior to ordering and we’re assured it could be done. Nothing quite like passing blame onto the customer! If this isn’t something that the waitstaff is educated on, at the very least the chef’s should have put two and two together and maybe suggested something different knowing we would not be getting the experience as described. That’s how customer service should be.

All in all - the food was good, service was okay but expensive for what you get. As expected, you’re paying to sit in the building and for the ambiance. My wife’s $65 dinner consisted of a salad, potatoes, peppers and some pasta. Had we known this is what the “testing menu” would have turned out as, we would have just ordered off the menu and would have most likely had a completely...

TL;DR, With it's minimal faults, Nostro Resto-Bar is one of the most unique and spectacular dining experiences in the USA, much less Utica.

I came here wary of the previous reviews, worrying about loud music, bad food, and a strange seating process. Fortunately, only the seating process complaint was accurate, The food was great and while the music borderlined on irritating, it never crossed that threshold. It seems that they pay attention to reviews and try to get better, which is commendable.

Here are my takeaways.

The Good:

-Nostro is one of the most delightful spaces for a restaurant I've ever been in. If you are at all a fan of mid-century modern architecture, this is a place to go. The map mural on the wall is jaw-dropping. Truly a unique experience. Even if the food was bad (it wasn't), it's worth just going there to experience this space. It reminds me of now closed The Four Seasons in NYC, or a scene from MadMen.

-Food was excellent, if not overly-stuffed with ricotta. The pasta was cooked al-dente and prepared wonderfully: Finally, a Carbonara that isn't doused with cream sauce; There should be no cream sauce in a Carbonara!

-Waitstaff was wonderful and attentive. My mother, whos' very picky about restaurants who ran one in NYC for a while, had an absolute blast and loved chatting up the staff.

-The lemon meringue cake was spectacular.

-Bartender was as serious as a heart attack but made fantastic drinks.

The Bad:

-I do not understand making us wait for a table, even with a reservation, when almost all the tables are empty. The table that we sat at was already set the entire time we were waiting at the bar. I can only imagine that they do this to get an extra drink purchase out of us. This is annoying: Just say "Would you like to have a drink at the bar before you sit down for dinner?" We would have said yes! Don't fool us into thinking our table isn't ready when it most definitely is so you can get a little more cash.

-Guys, please, it's too much ricotta.

-NYC prices

-The table mood lights are blinding.

Overall:

-This is not only one of the best restaurant experiences in Utica, it's one of the best I've ever had, having lived in NYC for most of my life and traveling the world as well. Despite the weird seating process and high end prices, You HAVE to come here. Just get ready to add a drink to your bill and...